Love Like War
by butchercup
Summary: Boomer is in love, but one of his closest friends is getting in his way, not to mention his shy personality. Butch has a player reputation, will he be able to convince the girl of his dreams that he can be serious? Can a Ruff and Puff be co-leaders without tension building up? *Mixed Couple Story! Requested By Rose Skylar* Reds and Blue-greens!
1. Prologue

_**YEEEAAAHH BABY! I'm back! Yay! okay, this is Love Like War! it was a story request by **_Rose Skylar, _**asked me to write a mixed couple story, so here it is! now keep in mind, this is only the prologue so it's before they started having feelings for each other. this is just basically what happened in the past to get them to where they are right now.**_

_**the actual story takes place when they are sixteen. Hope you like! This is for you Rose Skylar! :)**_

_**I Do Not Own Any Powerpuff Girls Characters!**_

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"We will take full responsibility for any trouble they cause, but my sisters and I have complete faith that they will stay true to their word." That very sentence that naturally flowed out of Blossom's lips was like music to Brick's ears. It amazed him how his counterpart was willing to trust him and his brothers to live among the citizens just as the Powerpuff Girls had.

Brick glanced around. His two brothers sitting on either side of him on the cold bench, and the three of them were in handcuffs. Directly in front of him, the Mayor sat at his desk with Miss Bellum standing by his side. Five police officers were spread around the office, much to the Boys' discomfort, and the Girls took up the small space between the Boys and the Mayor's desk.

This meeting was crucial to the Boys' future in the city. They were either given the opportunity to live in the city like the Girls, or sent back to prison for who knows how long. And considering the Boys' strength and abilities, no one had a problem with sending the three eight-year olds to prison.

"And their living arrangements?" Miss Bellum's string of questions was making Brick nervous. It was as if she was trying to find a reason why they couldn't live normal lives.

"Ms. Keane, the teacher at Pokey Oats Kindergarten, gladly volunteered to take that responsibility, and with our help, additional rooms can be added to her house for the boys by tomorrow morning" Blossom confidently stated. Brick watched the conversation with wide and anxious eyes. He glanced at the Mayor, who had only managed occasional nods and quiet agreements.

Suddenly Miss Bellum and the Mayor shared a long glance. She nodded slightly and returned her attention back to the six children.

"For one year, the boys will be under close watch by the police department-" all three boys gasped and lit up in excitement. "One major slip-up from you three and its straight to jail. Don't take this opportunity for granted boys." Miss Bellum exchanged smiles with the Girls before exiting the room. Their handcuffs were removed and Butch did multiple fist punches into the air, Boomer jumped around in circles with Bubbles- as he had already become very close to her- and Brick managed a relieved sigh.

"Come on guys! We have rooms to add to Ms. Keane's house" Blossom announced, flying out of the City Hall window. The six kids flew carelessly through the air laughing and cheering for the Boys' new found freedom. Both of Bubbles and Boomer's hands were locked together, spiraling happily through the sky and giggling uncontrollably. Butch and Buttercup began a friendly race to Ms. Keane's house, circling around each other while shouting cheers throughout the city. Blossom snatched Brick's red hat off his head, placing it on her own, and dashed in the direction of the house.

The six made it to the house where Ms. Keane was ready to welcome her new sons. Blossom giggled as Brick tackled her to the ground in the yard and retrieved his hat.

The next few hours were spent using their powers to create three rooms for each boy. Paint was thrown, laughs were shared, and short meaningful conversations were had. The Boys had grown specifically close to their counterparts, knowing they could always go them to talk when they were down, or if they just needed a good laugh. However, they were all friends, but they just had a special connection to their counterpart that they didn't have with the others. Once the rooms were just about finished, the six admired their work.

"Great job guys! Now the only problem is the paint, it's not safe to be around its fumes for too long" Blossom said. Bubbles perked up with a joyous smile.

"They can stay at our house tonight!" she suggested. Everyone seemed excited at the idea, so they rushed to the Girls' house.

After getting permission from the Professor, Buttercup and Bubbles set up a makeshift bed on the floor of their room with pillows and layers of blankets. The Girls said their goodnights and turned off the lights, closing their eyes with smiles.

Only two hours later, Boomer found that he couldn't sleep. He was filled with happiness and simply couldn't calm himself long enough to drift off to sleep. He heard a soft whimper behind him and sat up to find the source. It was Bubbles. Her small arm was dangling off the bed, inches from the floor, and she seemed frightened. Boomer quietly flouted out of his blankets and hovered next to Bubbles. He examined her, trying to think of a way to put her at ease.

He glanced at the floor and spotted a small purple octopus doll. Octi. He smiled at the memory when he first saw Bubbles clinging to the doll as if her life depended on it. He gripped Octi in his hand and carefully lifted Bubbles' wrist, placing the doll securely in her arm. Bubbles immediately hugged Octi with and her lips spread into a smile. Boomer suddenly felt a need to sleep, and slipped back under his blanket, calmly falling asleep.

Blossom fluttered her eyes open expecting bright light from the morning sun, but instead was greeted by red fabric. She reached up and pulled the object off her head. It was Brick's hat. Blossom smiled slightly, but was still confused. She noticed a small piece of paper taped to the rim of the snap-back.

_It looks better on you Pinky._

_-Brick_

Blossom smiled and placed the hat back on her head. She looked around the room to see the Boys must have gone home, and that Buttercup was nowhere in sight. On Buttercup's pillow was a slip of paper. Blossom sighed, wondering why everyone seemed to take a liking to writing notes, and picked it up.

_At the boy's house kicking Butch's butt at video games._

_-BC_

Blossom giggled softly, pleased with her new friends. She knew she was in for many years of adventures with these three boys.

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_**Yay! What'd you think!?**_

_**Tell me how you feel about it, and BTW! the pairings in this will be:**_

_**BoomerxButtercup**_

_**ButchxBubbles**_

_**BrickxBlossom**_

_**...But will it work out? Come back on the first of January to begin to find out!**_

_**XOXO**_


	2. Boomercrushed

_**YAY! First official chapter of Love Like War! This chapter will mostly cover Boomer's feelings...**_

_**Enjoy!**_

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**Boomercrushed**

Eight Years Later…

Boomer sat at his desk in History class, bored out of his mind. The only thing that kept him from wanting to skip the class was being able to admire his crush. She was the only reason he never ditched the most boring subject to ever be taught. Then again, he also didn't want to get into trouble. The way her hair fell around her flawless skin as she read from the text book. The way her eyes fluttered as she tried to stay awake while the teacher spoke. The way her eyes would light up when the bell would finally ring. It all kept Boomer at his desk, listening to the teacher describe events that happened years ago.

Today, however, they were giving presentations on some war in which Boomer forgot the name of. He lifted his head in interest when his teacher, Mr. Stevens, called for his crush to give her presentation.

"Buttercup Utonium, your presentation please." Yep, Boomer had a crush on Buttercup. Most people expected him to go for Bubbles, but he was into the hard-to-get, and dangerously pretty Powerpuff. Don't get Boomer wrong, Bubbles was pretty, all of the Powerpuff Girls were, but there was something about Buttercup that stood out to him. Not to mention the fact that Bubbles looked more like his sister than anything.

Boomer honestly believed that if he wanted Bubbles, he could have had her a long time ago using his charming side. He had a way with girls. He always knew what to say to fill a girl with complete bliss. Butch was the same, but less sweet about it, and he was more of a player than Boomer. Boomer had his eyes set on one girl, Buttercup. He couldn't use charm to get her though, that was the challenge in it. Every time he tried to flirt, a sense of nervousness took over, that's how he knew she was special. So many guys wanted her too, but she was a hard girl to get. She would roll her eyes at any guy that tried to flirt, or send them a glare telling them to back off. No guy had ever managed to get her to go on a date with them.

Buttercup stood from her seat, and made her way to the front of the classroom. She glanced at Boomer with a smile that sent most guys to cloud nine. He casually smiled back at her. Just because he had a crush on her, didn't mean he was weird about it. He never made it obvious like blushing or getting quiet whenever she was near. He kept his cool, and acted like they were nothing more than friends. He'd tell her eventually, but he just needed the perfect way to do it without messing up their friendship.

"Buttercup, where is your PowerPoint?" Mr. Stevens asked. Buttercup was leaning against the white board, looking at Mr. Stevens with a blank expression. She directed her attention to the class and smirked.

"Well…" Mr. Stevens sighed loudly and the class began to laugh lowly, awaiting Buttercup's excuse. "I actually did it, and I saved it to this flash drive" she held up a metallic, lime green flash drive. "Then I deleted it from my laptop because I'm low on space. And then… I kind of dropped the flash drive in my cup of soda… So, I'll just recite what I remember from reading, and what I put in the power point." Mr. Stevens sat back in his chair and listened.

Buttercup began her presentation, hitting every major point of the war. No one believes it at first, but Buttercup is actually really smart. She's not as smart as Blossom, but she's pretty smart. The only thing keeping her from honors classes is her attitude and not wanting to even be in an honors class. She maintained at least a C average by doing amazing work on projects and tests, and doing half the work on home and classwork. She needed to keep her grades up to maintain her title as the "Best Volleyball Player this school has ever had."

When she was done, the entire class clapped and a few guys whistled.

"Well Buttercup, I'll give you a B since you knew a lot of the material." Mr. Stevens said. Buttercup's smirk grew and she returned to her seat.

"Boomer Jojo, your turn." Boomer felt a lump form in his throat. He hated presenting, it didn't matter what class, he hated it. He was fine with talking in front of groups of people, but for some reason, presenting information in class made him nervous. He rolled his eyes and caught Buttercup looking at him with concern. She knew he hated presentations. Determination filled her bright green eyes, and she raised her hand.

"Mr. Stevens, did you take roll yet today?" she asked. Boomer gave a smirk that matched Buttercup's. Mr. Stevens always forgot to take roll at the beginning of class, and when he did do it, it took him forever. He sighed and turned to his computer screen to take roll. Boomer gave Buttercup a thankful glance and she nodded.

Suddenly, a green bracelet began to beep and light up on Buttercup's wrist. Boomer's cell phone began to vibrate uncontrollably, causing him to jump at the sudden movement. Mr. Stevens gave the two a knowing glance before they ran for the door. In the hallway, Blossom, Bubbles, Butch, and Brick were waiting.

The Professor made each of the Girls bracelets that would act like their Hotline. He also tricked out the Boys' cell phones to go off whenever there was trouble. A crash was heard from the city, and the six teens bolted out of the school.

"Another monster!?" Bubbles whined as the group approached the center of the city.

"Don't worry Bubbles, this will be easy!" Buttercup said. Without another word, she was ahead of the rest of the group, eager to be fighting. Boomer watched Buttercup throw strong punches and kick at the monster, not realizing he was staring.

"Come on Boom! You can drool over your girlfriend later!" Brick shout, snapping Boomer out of his daze. Brick and Butch both knew about Boomer's crush on Buttercup. They figured it out when they caught him practically drooling over her in a bikini during the summer. Boomer sent a glare to Brick before joining the others to fight. Before anyone, except Buttercup, had the chance to attack the monster, a giant claw slapped them all into the concrete.

"Oh that monster is really asking for it!" Buttercup exclaimed as she rose to her feet. She balled her hands into fists, ready to attack.

"Buttercup, wait! Maybe we shouldn't attack head on like this, we should try something else" Bubbles grabbed Buttercup's arm before she could fly off. Buttercup was about to protest when Brick interrupted.

"BC stop. Bubbles is right, we need a different strategy. Plus, your punches weren't doing any damage to the monster." Buttercup sighed and crossed her arms, waiting for instruction

"Why don't we use the new weapon the Professor made?" Blossom suggested, already flying in the direction of her house. Brick rushed to block her path with a stern expression.

"No way. That weapon hasn't been tested yet, and you know the Professor's inventions rarely do well even after they've been tested" he said. Blossom glared at him. They may have a truce, but that didn't stop Brick and Blossom from having a slight rivalry. Since they are both the leaders of their groups, and they technically merged their teams into one, the two have found it hard to be co-leaders with one another. They were each used to leading their siblings on their own, and sharing the title "Commander and Leader" didn't work as easily as everyone had hoped.

They were great friends until it came to a mission. Once they were called into action, it was like they no longer considered each other as friends, but rather co-leaders. After a battle, they would go right back to being the close friends they were. No matter how much they annoyed one another during a mission, that tension never followed them into their everyday lives.

"You're not the only one who can make big decisions Brick. I'm a leader too, and I can lead my sisters to do something if I want" Blossom stated. While the two leaders bickered, the others groaned in annoyance.

"Can those two ever go a mission without wanting to tear each other's throats out?" Butch complained.

"Nope, I'm surprised they can stay friends at school" Boomer replied.

"Where's Buttercup?" Bubbles questioned, looking around. Butch and Boomer glanced around as well, realizing she really was gone.

"Interesting, I wonder where she went" Butch said. Boomer nudged Butch in the side and pointed in the air where Buttercup was flying towards the monster. In her hands was a steel ball-like weapon. Bubbles recognized it as the weapon the Professor designed in order for them to defeat monsters without creating a huge mess.

Butch and Boomer watched Buttercup make her way to the head of the monster. She floated directly in front of its face with a slight smirk. The monster opened its mouth to swallow her whole, but Buttercup pulled a pin and tossed the circular weapon in, bolting out of reach. She calmly drifted onto the ground in a way that made her mid-length hair seem to float around her face in slow-motion. Boomer found himself unable to stop the dazed smile on his face.

When she landed gracefully on in the street, the monster began to shake vigorously. Buttercup turned on her heel and slowly made her way towards Bubbles, Butch, and Boomer. Behind her, the bomb Buttercup tossed into the monster's mouth went off, but instead of an explosion of fire, there was a bright ball of light.

Everything seemed to slow down for Boomer. The nearly blinding light behind Buttercup made her appear like an angel. The light breeze blew her black hair to the side in the slightest, and the sun light shined perfectly in front of her to make her eyes sparkle. Her mischievous smile made his heart beat a million times faster than normal. Butch chuckled at his brother as Buttercup arrived at their sides, not even noticing Boomer's stares.

Brick and Blossom joined the group after they heard the explosion. The bright ball of light left behind absolutely nothing. No fire, no monster body parts, and no buildings were destroyed. The bomb seemed to have simply blown the monster into nothing, without causing any more damage to the city.

"Great job BC" Butch said. Buttercup gave him a proud smile before replying.

"Why thank you Butch, maybe I should be the leader instead of these two!" she sent glares at the Brick and Blossom.

"Well things would have gone smoother if Brick had just let me use the bomb!" Blossom stated, starting up another argument between the two.

"Will you two just SHUT UP!?" Boomer shouted. The leaders immediately quit their bickering and dropped the conflict. Buttercup giggled softly at Boomer's command. He loved it when she laughed. It was the perfect mix of Bubbles' high pitched one and her own voice. She always seemed genuinely happy whenever she laughed, and Boomer loved being the one to make her do it.

The teens flew into the air, heading back to school. Blossom and Brick were silently forgiving one another, knowing they wouldn't be able to stay mad.

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_**YAY! **_

_**There will be more ButchxBubbles in the next chapter, but not what you'd expect. it takes time for these things okay! be patient I promise sweet Butchubbles moments in the future!**_

_**Thanks for Reading!**_

_**XOXO**_


	3. Falling for A Flower

_**Hey guys! I'm sorry if the chapters haven't been very good so far, but I promise it is getting better.**_

_**Enjoy, and Review please!**_

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The school bell rang just as the six heroes landed in the hallway. Crowds of teenagers suddenly filled the halls and Buttercup glanced around franticly.

"No… no! Somebody please tell me that wasn't the lunch bell!" she cried. Butch rolled his eyes.

"Chill out Butterscotch, you'll live without one meal" he smirked, earning a slight glare from Buttercup, yet another thing about her Boomer found appealing.

"Says the guy who I found rummaging through my fridge an hour after stuffing his face at a buffet!" Butch's smirk turned to a glare that matched Buttercup's.

"You swore you'd never speak of that" he said lowly, getting too close to Buttercup's face for Boomer's liking.

"Shut it Twitch" she spat before turning to Boomer. Buttercup was going to start up a conversion with Boomer in order to ignore the argument, but Butch had other plans.

"Stop calling me that!" he shouted. Buttercup turned back and the two argued. Boomer and Bubbles watched the scene before them. Blossom and Brick had left the group, off to their next class, and Butch and Buttercup were in the middle of one of their arguments.

Their arguments were never serious and were always forgotten within about twenty minutes. The two always fought about the stupidest of things, but that was just how their friendship worked. They fought and then laugh about it later.

"Sometimes I wonder if those two will ever just kiss in the middle of an argument" Bubbles stated, still watching her sister. Boomer's stomach twisted, did they like each other? Bubbles noticed Boomer's tension and giggled.

"I'm just kidding. Besides, I don't think they have the slightest interest in one another. Then again, you never know when I comes to Butch" Boomer lightly pushed Bubbles to the side causing her to giggle even more. Out of the three pairs, Bubbles and Boomer got along the best. They never fought and they told each other everything. That meant Bubbles knew about Boomer's massive crush on Buttercup. They were best friends and Bubbles noticed his attraction the very day he figured it out.

Boomer relaxed as he watched his brother and friend began to laugh about their stupidity. Butch was like the player of the three Rowdyruff Boys. He flirted more than any guy in the school. He had broken many girls' hearts and even helped some fix it, only to have it broken again. So even if Butch was attracted to Buttercup, Boomer had nothing to worry about since he was never serious about any girl right?

Wrong. His brothers and friends believed him to be the biggest player they'd ever met. Which may have been true, but Butch never intended on being one. He honestly didn't expect to have gone on so many dates in one week. One day he had accidentally said 'yes' to four girls for a date, completely forgetting about his previous arrangements. His dates went smoothly, but the following Monday, Butch was confronted by four very ticked-off girls. One of them called him a player, so he eventually started to believe it, and here he is now hated by a handful of teenage girls, but at the same time adored.

He had to admit it, Buttercup was a girl he would go for, but not even he was that crazy to try and play with her feelings. Besides, she wasn't exactly his type. Sure she was pretty and a good friend, but he'd probably be tearing his hair out in a relationship with her. Buttercup was too much like him, aside from constant flirting with the opposite gender. She had an attitude that was worse than Butch's and he could not deal with someone with a worse attitude than his; he knew how difficult he could be. Not to mention, Boomer already called dibs years ago, and even though he had yet to make a move, Butch respected the "Bro Code".

His friends were right; Butch was never serious about any of the girls he dated. But what they all failed to see was that there was one specific girl Butch couldn't get out of his mind for even a split-second in the day. She was the one girl who always rejected him. The one girl whose child-like laugh made his heart race and whose smile brightened his mood like the sun after a rainstorm. Between his and Buttercup's laughs, Butch was able to take a quick glance at the girl he wanted so much to call his Sunshine.

"Come on guys, we should get to class" Boomer suggested as he made his way down the hall with Buttercup. Butch was pulled out of his daze, shaking his head at his brother who just wouldn't make a move. Butch on the other hand tried constantly for the girl of his dreams.

"Hey, what do say we go get some ice cream after school, I happen to know you really love ice cream" he said, putting an arm around Bubbles' shoulders. The two followed behind Boomer and Buttercup towards the school gym. Bubbles blushed slightly but giggled to hide it.

"In your dreams Butch" Bubbles removed his arm with a sweet smile and followed Buttercup into the girls' locker room. There it was, the rejection Butch received from Bubbles on a weekly basis. Everyone thought that when he flirted with her or asked her on a date, that he was just messing around, being the silly Butch he could be. Bubbles never thought for a moment that he was being serious. But they were wrong. Butch meant every word he spoke to Bubbles, hoping one day she'd say yes.

He never joked when it came to Bubbles. It didn't hurt too much to be rejected so much; he knew it wasn't her fault. She had no clue he was serious, and he wondered if she ever would. Butch was determined to one day convince her to go on a date with him. And when he did, he'd show her the best time of her life so they could have even more dates in the future. He could go on a million dates, but none of them would matter unless Bubbles was the one by his side.

A few minutes later, Buttercup and Bubbles were in the gym playing a game of volleyball. Bubbles and Buttercup were an unstoppable team when it came to volleyball. Everyone wanted them on their team since they worked so well together. Today, however, the two sisters were their own team, going against about fifteen other students. Since it was a free-day, everyone could do what they wanted as long as they were active, and no one really cared about team numbers and scoring rules.

Boomer watched Buttercup flick her wrist with ease, sending the volleyball smoothly over the net. It amazed him how she could be so great in sports even without her powers. They never used their powers in sports or games unless it was only them.

Boomer was standing in the middle of the half court which wasn't taken up by the volleyball net. Seeing Buttercup's graceful moves took his attention away from what he was doing. In fact, he couldn't even remember why he was standing in the court. He took notice of how pretty she looked, even though she was on the verge of sweating bullets. Buttercup took a second to tighten her messy-high ponytail and noticed Boomer watching her.

He froze. His cheeks began to heat up at the realization that he'd been staring, and it was probably pretty creepy. Boomer calmed himself; he could fix this. Instead of looking away awkwardly, Boomer smiled approvingly. Buttercup managed a small smile back, figuring he was just admiring her good teamwork with his counterpart.

Boomer mentally patted himself on the back for avoiding an awkward situation with ease. He took a quick glance right into Buttercup's eyes in time to catch it sparkle in the light. Suddenly, pain screamed throughout Boomer's face. He opened his eyes, not remembering ever closing them, to find himself on the gym floor with a few students staring at him. "_That's right,_" Boomer thought. "_We were playing dodge ball!_" Although he had grown, Boomer's childhood ditzyness came to haunt him at times.

Boomer heard a muffled laugh just a few feet away. Mitch Michelson. "Sorry dude!" Mitch called, not even trying to contain his laughter anymore. Boomer sent a glare his way, but only managing to make Mitch laugh even harder thanks to Boomer's hardly-threating-glare.

"You alright, Blue?" Boomer turned his head to meet the bright green eyes he loved so much. Buttercup was crouched next to Boomer, concern spread across her face. Boomer wanted more than anything to just cry. He may have been a Rowdyruff Boy, but he was sensitive. That ball was harder than it looked.

Tears threatened to well up, but Boomer's main priority was to keep them from coming. The last thing he wanted was to cry over getting hit by ball in front of Buttercup, the "Toughest Fighter". He couldn't ever expect a date with her if he cried over this.

"I am perfectly fine" Boomer proudly stated. He quickly got to his feet and put on a fake smile. Buttercup stood up as well and glared doubtfully at him.

"You know your lip is bleeding, right?" she asked plainly. Boomer lightly brushed his finger across his lower lip and winced at the pain. Buttercup raised an eyebrow at him.

"Do you want to go to the nurse? I'll walk with you" she offered. As much as he wanted to roam the halls with his crush, Boomer couldn't risk looking like a baby in front of Buttercup.

"No really, I couldn't be better" he said. Buttercup looked ready to protest further but decided against it.

"Fine, but now for my next question, what the heck is wrong with your brother?" Buttercup pointed behind Boomer where Butch was leaning against the wall. Boomer and Buttercup approached him, confused that he would sit out a game of dodge ball.

"What's with you Twitch? Where have you been this whole time" Buttercup questioned.

"I was in the locker room…" Butch answered.

"Doing what?" Buttercup was completely lost; Butch was typically the first one in the gym. Boomer thought for a moment, and then a wide grin spread across his face.

"You got your foot stuck in the toilet again, didn't you?" Butch glared at his brother before violently shaking his head.

"Gym shorts caught on a locker?" Buttercup guessed.

"…Maybe. And I ripped a huge hole in them trying to get out" Boomer and Buttercup burst into fits of laughter, receiving glares from Butch.

"Why didn't you just change back into your pants?" Buttercup asked, trying to calm herself.

"Because, Butterscotch, number one, Butch Jojo never has and never will get a zero for the day in P.E. And number two… Couch kicked me out before I had the chance."

"Hey! How's my favorite super powered friends?!" Mitch suddenly appeared and stood next to Butch.

"Oh I'm great! You know, aside from my bleeding lip!" Boomer exclaimed. Mitch chuckled lightly and aimed a charming smile at Buttercup.

"That was a pretty good throw, huh BC? If it was enough to make a Ruff cry." Mitch deepened his smile and winked in Buttercup's direction, causing her to blush. One thing to know about Mitch; he had a crush on Buttercup too. He and Boomer were still best friends though; all of the Ruffs were friends with Mitch. In fact, the Ruffs, Buttercup, and Mitch hung out the most on weekends. Blossom and Bubbles had their own group of friends to be with. Every once in a while, the Puffs, Ruffs, Mitch, and Robin would all spend a weekend together, but for the most part it was just the boys and Buttercup.

Boomer was well aware of Mitch's attraction to Buttercup. He developed it just a few months after Boomer had in middle school. Even though Boomer told Mitch, he still flirted with Buttercup and made small attempts to be romantic. It was like Boomer and Mitch were in the middle of an unspoken war with one another. The boys would be out with Buttercup, and Mitch would try to get her alone with him so he could kiss her or something. Then Boomer would 'accidentally' interrupt, making Mitch silently furious at Boomer.

Mitch was also more open about his crush on Buttercup. Many students around the school were aware due to Mitch's obvious flirt attempts. He would shout out compliments to her from across the hall, making her cheeks turn a light pink. Boomer, on the other hand, only let his brothers and Bubbles know, and never openly flirted with Buttercup. Mitch didn't seem to care in the least that Boomer liked her; the two were practically competing for Buttercup's heart.

"I wasn't going to cry" Boomer growled. He hated how Mitch tried to make him seem weak. Buttercup took note of the tension between her two friends and decided to leave the scene before anything happened.

"Well I'm going back to my game. Why don't we all hang out tomorrow, maybe at the mall?" The three boys nodded and muttered their agreements and Buttercup turned to resume her game of volleyball. Before she turned, however, Buttercup hadn't missed the second flirtatious wink Mitch sent her. The color in her cheeks darkened and she ran back to aid Bubbles in the game. She knew Mitch had some type of attraction towards her, but she tried her hardest to keep their friendship. Mitch was her very first friend when she went to kindergarten, and she didn't want to lose him. His constant flirting made her blush out of embarrassment, not attraction, but she'd never tell him that.

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_**Kay! hope you like this...**_

_**Again I'm sorry if it's not what you expected or something, but I know if you stick with me you won't regret it!... *Nervous smile***_


	4. A Word Of Advice

_**hi**_

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Boomer felt the warmth of the sun's beams that filled his bedroom the next morning. He smiled to himself at the familiar smell of breakfast being made. It was nice to have a mother who cooked every meal and a small yet cozy house to call home. Boomer and his brothers counted themselves lucky that the citizens of Townsville accepted them as _former_ villains.

Boomer slowly let his eye lids rise, exposing them to the bright spring sun. He pulled his sheets to cover his face only to find they wouldn't budge. Normally he could pull the blankets enough to cover every inch of his hair, but this time he couldn't. Boomer tugged at the comforter as hard as he could until he got frustrated. He sighed loudly and sat up in bed to be greeted by a toothy grin from Butch.

Boomer let out a short yet loud screech, falling out of his bed. Butch chuckled lightly as he stood from his cross-legged position on his brother's bed.

"Butch! What the hell are you doing in my room?" Boomer demanded, still shaken.

"Calm down Booms, I'm here to help you out" Boomer furrowed his brow in confusion.

"If your goal was to make me feel safe at night, then you failed horribly. Have you been there all night!?" Butch shook his head and helped Boomer to his feet.

"No, only about five minutes" he said nonchalantly.

"You're a psycho" Boomer stated.

"So I've been told. But that's beside the point! You need my help."

"With what?" Butch smirked and placed a hand on his suspicious brother's shoulder. "Let's face is bro', your sad attempts at flirting with Buttercup is getting old…"

"I don't like where this is going…" Butch ignored Boomer's quiet protests. "You need to step up your game before you lose her to someone else. And you know exactly who that someone is."

"...Okay first of all, I don't make attempts at all to flirt with her, and second I'm pretty sure Buttercup does not like Mitch." Butch firmly gripped Boomer's blue T-shirt by the collar and glared.

"First off, that's your problem, how can you expect to be with BC if she doesn't even know you like her. Second, Mitch is planning to ask her to the upcoming dance on Monday, and he could most likely make her fall for him twenty minutes into it, so unless you want to go the rest of the school year seeing her in Mitch's _noodle arms_, you'll listen to every word I say for the rest of the day."

Boomer blinked nervously. That was the last thing he wanted, he couldn't let Mitch show him up anymore. He nodded confidently at Butch, who returned it with a smile. Butch released his grip on Boomer's shirt and made his way out of the room, motioning for Boomer to follow.

"Wait, there's a dance coming up?"

* * *

Later on, Boomer wandered the mall, laughing with his brothers and friends. He replayed Butch's advice over and over in his mind, and surprisingly, it had been working. Butch had told his brother to go with his first thought and never over think before speaking or Boomer had started a mini food fight in the food court between the five of them with whipped cream from their ice cream. Someone got the tiniest bit of ice cream on Brick's hat, and he freaked out.

After he took care of the stain on his precious hat, Brick even helped Boomer find ways to get Buttercup's attention. He nudged Boomer in the stomach and nodded his head towards the photo booth they were approaching. Brick was closest to it in the line they were walking in. Boomer was to his right, Buttercup next to him, and Butch and Mitch next to her. They walked together in sync until Brick moved to walk next to Mitch so Boomer could have a clear path to the photo booth.

Just as they were walking past it, Boomer grabbed Buttercup's wrist and pulled her in. A slight yelp was heard from Buttercup since all her focus was on her phone at the moment. Mitch glared at the photo booth, although Boomer couldn't see him, and Brick and Butch exchanged a quick high-five.

Boomer immediately slid a dollar into the slot and waited for the first picture to flash. Buttercup and Boomer smiled simply for the first picture. He glanced at Buttercup and noticed her scrunching her nose in a cute way, right before allowing a soft sneeze.

"You sneeze like a kitten" Boomer chuckled, earning a light punch in the arm from Buttercup. The camera captured the second picture of the two laughing and Boomer playfully rubbing his shoulder where she hit him. For the next picture, Boomer crossed his eyes making Buttercup laugh, but she tried to contain her smile long enough to curl her tongue at the camera.

A sudden thought entered Boomers mind. He tried not to over think the idea just as he had been all day. He smiled at the thought of lightly bringing Buttercup's face closer to his, and kissing her for the last picture. He lifted his arm, heart beating a thousand times faster, ready to pull Buttercup by her chin.

"PHOTO BOMB!" Mitch pulled open the curtains to the booth and forced his upper body in. His head blocked most of Buttercup and Boomer's faces, though anyone could tell they were very irritated. The camera caught the fourth photo of Mitch's idiotic smiling face, and barely noticeable annoyed features on the small amount of Boomer's face in the background. Mitch exited to booth with a satisfied smile, while Boomer sent a death glare that could kill.

Brick and Butch silently apologized to their brother for letting Mitch interrupt. Boomer shrugged it off and continued to walk throughout the mall after retrieving the two picture strips and handing one to Buttercup.

Minutes later, Brick led them into the instrument section of a department store. Buttercup admired every guitar and drum set like a kid in a candy store. Butch picked up a dark green guitar and pretended to play.

"Butch! Put that thing down before you break it!" Brick commanded. Butch paid no attention to Brick's demands, and mindlessly stuck his tongue out in attempt to keep the guitar from slipping out of his hands.

"Hey, maybe Brick's right. We could get in serious trouble if you break that" Mitch spoke up. Butch rolled his eyes with a cocky smile, still ignoring his friends.

"You know what? We should be in a band together! We can be the Rowdyruff Boys!" he exclaimed.

"How original" Boomer stated, un-amused. Buttercup glared at Butch. "What about me? I'm not a boy!" Butch cringed at Buttercup's raising voice. "Alright fine! The Rowdyruff Boys and Girl!" Buttercup rolled her eyes.

"You're an idiot. Now put down the guitar and let's go." Butch chuckled and let the instrument's base touch the ground while the head was still in his grasp. He leaned slightly on the guitar as if it were giving him support to stand.

"You guys worry too much. But I'm serious about that band thing! We'd make a pretty awesome-" Butch let too much of his weight rely on the guitar, and it slipped from its sturdy position causing Butch to fall to the side. He landed on his shoulder with the guitar in three pieces under him, and his arms and part of his head knocked into a row of guitar cases. They fell like dominoes and eventually crashed into a group of guitars and violins, which broke the violins instantly due to their small structure.

Brick, Boomer, Mitch, and Buttercup watched the scene with wide eyes. Butch gasped quietly as he looked up at the damage.

"You think the anyone will notice?" he asked, getting to his feet. Brick glared at his brother and smacked him up-side the head. Voices were heard nearby and shadows of workers got close to the area.

"We're dead" Mitch stated. Buttercup stared in the direction in which workers would appear. "We have to get out of here, now!"

"Let's fly then!" Butch suggested, already hovering over the ground.

"We can't idiot! If we fly, they'll know it was us, and if we get caught I will be lectured to death by Blossom and the Professor!" Buttercup yelled in a hushed tone. Butch nodded and let his feet touch the ground again.

Boomer glanced around, spotting a rack of hoodies right across from the instrument section. He rushed toward it and pulled four hoodies from the rack.

"Here put this on, quick!" he commanded, handing Buttercup a pale green hoodie. Mitch furrowed his brow at the black sweater in his hand.

"This is no time for Barbie dress up Boomer!" Mitch said. Boomer glared at him, silently telling to _shut up and put the hoodie on!_

"Pull your hoods up" Boomer said, handing Butch a forest green hoodie. Brick was already wearing his own hoodie and pulled the hood over his hatted head.

"Okay, no follow my lead got it?" Boomer said leader-like after he slid a dark blue sweater over himself. He got on his hands and knees and crawled behind a stack of instrument cases, motioning for the others to do the same.

"Hey! This is a woman's sweatshirt! It has sequins all over the chest!" Butch complained, and Buttercup stifled a giggle at the sight.

"Shut up and get down Butch!" Boomer growled. Butch sighed, but crouched down next to Brick. Three employees came into view as they turned the corner into the section. They stood wide-eyed in front of the pile of broken merchandise. The three split up in search of anyone who caused the damage. The taller worker of the three approached the stack in which the five teens hid behind. Boomer held up his hand as if to keep anyone from moving. The man peeked around the stack of cases and spotted the five teens.

"Make like birds and get the flock outta here!" Boomer shouted, getting to his feet. He grabbed Buttercup's hand and made a run for the exit, and the other three boys were right behind them. Calls were heard behind them from the furious employees, and the group only ran faster. Boomer led them out of the department store and faced the crowded mall.

"Hey! Stop right where you are!" Brick turned to see security guards running at full speed toward them.

"Let's go!" Boomer called before running into the crowd of people, Buttercup's hand still tightly in his. He rounded a corner next to the bathrooms and leaned against the wall, the others following suit. They watched as the two guards ran right passed them and cheered in victory.

Suddenly another guard stumbled out of the men's restroom. Mitch smiled politely, yet awkwardly, and received a polite nod of acknowledgement in return.

"_All security guards, keep an eye out for five teenagers in various colored hoodies. They are to be charged with the destruction of merchandise and theft of four sweatshirts._" The guard's walkie-talkie blurted. He examines the teens in front of him and confirmed that they were who he was looking for.

"Well, this has been nice, seeya!" Boomer said, darting off with his friends again. The guard immediately took off after them.

"Boomer, you think it might be a good idea to, oh I don't know, run for the exit!" Brick shouted. Boomer rolled his eyes.

"Of course I thought of that! It should be right around-" he stopped dead in his tracks as he stared at the blank wall in front of him. "-This… corner?"

"We're dead" Mitch stated blandly for the second time.

"_You'll_ be dead if you don't stop saying that!" Boomer snapped.

"Well do you have any more bright ideas, genius?" Mitch questioned. Quick footsteps were heard approaching.

"As a matter of fact, I do" Boomer said proudly. "Get on your hands and knees, quick!" Boomer commanded, pulling off his hoodie. Butch glared at the floor.

"No way! This floor is filthy!" Everyone slowly turned to look at Butch with confusion.

"Are you gonna be a sissy all day?" Buttercup asked. Butch sighed and got on his knees. Boomer flouted slightly over the marble floor with his arms crossed just as the guard turned the corner.

"Caught you, you little trouble makers!" he exclaimed. Boomer cleared his throat to get his attention.

"I've got this all under control sir" he said.

"Well thank you Bomber, now I have to take these hooligans to the office." The guard took a step toward them.

"It's Boomer, and that won't be necessary officer. I'll make sure they are taken care of"

"But the fines-"

"Will be delivered straight to the mayor once my brothers and I get the money from them. And I'm sure the Girls will be alerting their parents as soon as they can." The guard smiled and began to walk away.

"Wait, weren't there five of them?" Boomer was silent for a moment, when he spoke he stuttered slightly.

"N-no, there were only four. You-uh, you must have heard wrong." The guard shrugged and began to turn the corner again.

"Okay then! Thanks a lot Bomber!" Boomer started to correct him, but figured it was useless.

"Good thinking Blue!" Buttercup applauded standing and high-fiving Boomer. Brick and Butch ruffled his hair and thanked him. Boomer smiled. Thanks to Butch's advice, he was much closer to being able to ask Buttercup on a date without much fear of rejection.

"Man, forget being in a band, we should all be track stars!" Butch said proudly. Buttercup and Brick rolled their eyes and ignored his silly comment.

A buzz sounded from each of the boys' cell phones, except Mitch's of course, and Buttercup's bracelet. Brick was the first to remove his phone from his pocket and examine the message.

"Looks like the fun is over, the Gangreen Gang is terrorizing Central Park" Brick said.

"It doesn't _have_ to be over. It's only the Gangreen Gang, Brick; we'll be done with them within five minutes."

* * *

_**Well there's that! I've decided to update every Friday! but! report cards are coming soon and if I have a D in geometry, my laptop go bye-bye :( so that would mean not updates for a while. so if I don't update next Friday or any Friday after that on this story, you know why :( I tried hard on my exam though so I hope it's okay!**_

_**Thanks for reading**_

_**Review!**_

_**XoX**_


	5. Willing to Let Go?

_**Hello wonderful people! I just wanted to thank all you great readers for reading my story! I'm so happy with how this is going and it's all thanks to you guys! **_

_**As you can tell, I did not get my computer taken... even though I completely failed my Geometry test... so updates with be frequently on Fridays!**_

_**Butch: yeah yeah, just get on with the story!**_

_**Me: Sometimes having your favorite Ruff help out with the intros isn't a good idea!**_

_**Butch: Too late now. Now come on! lets get this chapter over with!**_

* * *

"Bubbles! The Gangreen Gang is causing trouble at the park, let's go" Blossom flew out the bedroom window with Bubbles right behind her. As the Townsville Park came into view, Blossom quickly took in the scene. Brick and Boomer were fighting against members of the gang, with little success on their part. Buttercup and Butch were lying on the grass near each other as if nothing was going on. Blossom bolted to her sister's side and kneeled over her.

"What are you two doing?!" she barked. Buttercup and Butch only glanced up at her, making her even more annoyed.

"Oh hey Leader Girl. Well see, when we got here, Ace threw some random gadget at Butters and I, it electrocuted us and now we're temporarily paralyzed. Um, I think Mitch ran off like a scared little bitch, and Brick and Boomer are-"

"She gets it Twitch!" Buttercup snapped before Butch could finish.

"I don't even do that anymore!" he argued. Blossom rolled her eyes and rushed to help Brick and Boomer.

Brick had never broken so much as a sweat when fighting the Gangreen Gang, but today, they seemed somehow better and stronger. He threw punch after punch, kick after kick, but Ace and his gang dodged every blow. Brick was getting frustrated, he picked up Butch by his collar.

"Sorry bro" he said, Butch cried out protests but was ignored, and Brick tossed Butch into Snake and Grubber. Butch lay in an awkward position on the grass a few yards from where he previously was.

"Hey! I don't appreciate you using me as a weapon!" Butch complained. Once again Brick ignored his brother and continued to fight. Using Butch did little damage to the two gang members, as they got to their feet. He took glances at his surroundings when he had the chance for anything that could be of use to him. He needed a plan, and fast.

Butch watched the fight from the corner of his eye, feeling useless. A small shadow suddenly blocked the setting sun light that once covered his face.

"Hey guys! Did anyone know that Arturo's comb is also a pocket knife?!" he called.

"No, how would you know that?" Boomer questioned, dodging a punch from Big Billy. He caught sight of Lil' Arturo standing over Butch with a pocket knife at hand. Boomer left his battle with Big Billy and rushed to punch Arturo away. Boomer stood proudly until Lil' Arturo reappeared, grabbing Boomer's pant leg and swinging him around like a rag-doll. Boomer cried out as his face hit the ground multiple times until he was unconscious.

"Boomer!" Butch and Buttercup shouted. Blossom turned to see Butch, still helplessly on the grass, and Lil' Arturo luckily not moving to attack him. As far as Blossom was concerned, Butch was only lucky that Arturo completely forgot about him, and it was possible that Buttercup wouldn't get so lucky if a gang member decided to attack her. She spotted Bubbles checking Boomer's pulse with a smile, clearly he was okay.

"Bubbles! Get them somewhere safe until they can fight again" Blossom commanded. Bubbles nodded and took Boomer in her arms, flying up to the nearest roof.

"Hey, I'm getting feeling in my arms and upper body!" Buttercup said. Butch tried to move his own arms, but was disappointed to find they were motionless. He mindlessly kicked his legs up in frustration.

"Stupid arms! Oh hey, I can feel my legs!" he exclaimed happily.

Brick stood in the field, raking his brain for an idea, a plan to end the fight. He glanced up at Mojo's lab and a sudden idea hit him. He needed a partner though. He saw Blossom had her hands full with Ace and Big Billy, Butch and Buttercup were still useless, and he had no clue where Boomer was. He spotted Bubbles nearing Butch and called her.

"Bubbles! I need your help, come with me quick!" he called. Bubbles looked back at Butch and then to Buttercup. Blossom gave her orders to get them somewhere safe, and she was the leader. But Brick was a leader too, and Butch seemed able to fend for himself with his movable legs. Buttercup had already begun using her arms to pull herself out of the situation. With another call from Brick, Bubbles followed him up to Mojo's lair.

Blossom was getting worn out from the fight. She'd never gone so long in a battle with the Gangreen Gang, and they seemed so powerful and well trained. She floated a few feet above the ground, glaring at Ace and Big Billy, who looked as if they could fight for hours. Ace pulled out a throwing star and launched it at Blossom. She jumped out of the way, the star barely missing her and attaching to a billboard, and Big Billy grabbed her by the hair and threw her to the ground. He placed his shoe on her back in order to keep her down. Blossom struggled under Billy's foot, to no avail.

Atop a roof nearby, Boomer sat up rubbing his head in pain. He stood up slowly, in hopes of not getting a dizzy feeling, and held on to the edge of the roof for support. He slowly lifted himself off the concrete, but stopped when a sense of dizziness took over. The sound of metal invaded Boomer's ears, and he looked around for the source. A billboard was losing balance, or at least Boomer thought it was. It could have been his eyes playing tricks, but Boomer focused on the structure with his enhanced eye sight. Near the base of the billboard, a throwing star was emitting electricity throughout the metal. The already weak steel was no match for the sudden shock, and began to topple over.

"BUTTERCUP!" Butch and Blossom screamed at the top of their lungs. Boomer's eyes darted to the grass, where Buttercup frantically tugged at chunks of grass to get away. She was too slow to make it in time. Brick and Bubbles were nowhere to be seen, and Blossom and Butch were in no position to rescue Buttercup. A sudden wave of confidence struck Boomer and he stood straight. This was his moment. This would be the moment when he could literally sweep Buttercup off her feet. Boomer shook off the slight dizziness and was in the air in an instant.

Buttercup noticed a large shadow form, and looked up to see a colorful billboard ready to crush her. She gasped, her eyes wide, and her breath quickened as Buttercup clawed her hands into the dirt in a desperate attempt to save herself. Buttercup had never felt so helpless and vulnerable. She was close to screaming in terror when strong arms wrapped around her waist. Buttercup's rescuer ran with her tightly in their grasp, and jumped out of the way as the billboard hit the ground, landing just inches out of the way.

Dust and dirt fogged the area. It was hard to see much of what happened. Blossom held her breath until she saw black hair safely out of the way of the fallen billboard. The weight on her back lessened, and Blossom was quick to take advantage of it and throw Big Billy off. A single punch in the jaw sent Billy yards away and unconscious. Blossom repeated the simple attack with the rest of the gang, defeating them within thirty seconds.

Boomer hovered in the air, wide-eyed and heart pounding faster than ever before. His blood boiled with anger and frustration as he watched Buttercup's lips spread into a smile. Her emerald eyes glistened as they looked into the dark brown, almost black, eyes of Mitch Michelson. Buttercup lay on the grass, one of Mitch's arms wrapped around her, and Mitch on his knees next to her with a charming smile. Buttercup's cheeks colored deeply as she refused to break eye contact with Mitch.

"I could have gotten away..." Buttercup mumbled, trying to hide the redness of her face. Mitch chuckled, rolling his eyes at her need to be the strongest.

Boomer closed his eyes, hoping to open them to his bedroom, realizing it was all a dream. He opened them to the same scene he desperately wished was all his imagination. He closed his eyes again, tighter this time, but opened them to be disappointed once again. Boomer's fists shook with fury and intense jealousy. He felt guilty for even thinking of hurting his friend. Mitch may have just ruined his chances with the girl of his dreams, but Boomer couldn't beat the daylights out of him for it. He sighed and took off home before his fury got the best of him.

Butch watched his little brother fly away. He'd have to talk to him later. Butch glanced at Mitch, who took Buttercup in his arms bridal style. Butch took notice of how Buttercup didn't wrap her arms around Mitch's neck; rather she crossed her arms in front of her. Did it mean anything?

Red and light blue stripes bolted out of Mojo's lair door and in front of Blossom.

"Okay, let's end this figh- hey what happened?" Brick seemed ready to take down some villains until he noticed the pile of green-skinned gangsters being shoved into a police car. In Brick and Bubbles' hands were long chains. Blossom glared at the both of them.

"Bubbles, I thought I told you to get Boomer, Butch, and _Buttercup_ somewhere safe!" Blossom barked. Bubbles shrank, she hated when Blossom yelled, especially at her. She expected Buttercup to yell, because she's Buttercup, but Blossom was usually calm and Bubbles hated seeing this side of her.

"…Well Brick wanted me to help him with something, and Butterc-" Blossom covered Bubbles' mouth gently with her hand. Bubbles remained silent, knowing Blossom's anger was no longer towards her.

Blossom glared harshly at only Brick. He darted his eyes around, not noticing the fuming girl in front of him. When he did look at Blossom, Brick seemed taken aback.

"What?" he asked, innocence written all over his face.

"Do you _ever_ think before you act?" Blossom questioned. She didn't even wait for a response. "My sister could have died if Mitch hadn't been here! You didn't even bother to wonder if Bubbles was already busy!" Bubbles backed away from the two red heads and sat down next to Butch, bracing herself for the upcoming argument. Butch cursed in his head, Bubbles seemed so troubled, and he couldn't move his arms to comfort her!

"Chill out Blossom! She never said anything, so assumed she was free! And Buttercup's fine isn't she?!" Brick raised his voice as he spoke.

"That's not the point Brick. The point is that you interrupted an order I gave for… where did you even go?" Brick held up the chain with an annoyed attitude.

"That's another thing! You went into Mojo's lab?! You could have started another fight, as if the Gangreen Gang wasn't hard enough already! You don't think these things through!" Brick returned Blossom's glare, but his was much more intimidating.

"Well I didn't see you coming up with any bright ideas!" he snapped.

"You call that a bright idea? I-"

"STOP IT!" Bubbles suddenly cried out. Brick and Blossom looked at Bubbles, who crossed her arms with a pout. Blossom knew that look. It was the same look she always gave her and Buttercup whenever they fought. Blossom sighed, "I'm done arguing with you Brick, but I think we should lead our own groups separately from now on. You don't order my girls, and I won't order your boys." Blossom turned to fly home calmly.

"You might as well toss our friendship in this little break-up too" Blossom stopped dead in her tracks and turned to face him again, speechless. She blinked in confusion at Brick.

"I'm sick of you always acting like you're the only leader in this group…"

"But I-"

"No Blossom, you thought you could scold _me? _Argue with _me, _try and boss _me _around, and get away with it? It doesn't work like that Blossom. I'm your counterpart, I'm just like you. I'm just as stubborn and I can start unfair arguments too! The difference is I'm not as bossy. I don't have to have everything go my way, and I'm not a spoiled bitch, who thinks everyone should do what I say!" Blossom took every word Brick said like bullets, shooting through her heart like she was being massacred.

"Fine… I don't want to be friends with a rude, enormous-tempered, outdated baseball cap wearing Rowdyruff, who was made out of a puppy's tail!" Blossom immediately flew off into the mostly-dark sky before Brick could say anything more.

"COME ON BUBBLES!" Blossom shouted over her shoulder. Bubbles flinched. She looked at Brick, who stared intensely at the grass as if he wanted to burn it all, and then to Butch, who gave her a reassuring smile. She returned it with a small forced smile. She began to follow her sister until Buttercup cleared her throat. Bubbles turned and remembered she still couldn't move.

"Blossom, what about Buttercup?" Bubbles called. Blossom reappeared and gripped Mitch's collar, more aggressively than she intended, and pulled him into the sky with Buttercup still in his arms. Buttercup panicked for a moment, afraid of falling out of Mitch's arms from Blossom's violent pull, and wrapped her arms tightly around Mitch's neck. Bubbles followed closely behind, taking one last look at her two former teammates.

Butch looked at his seemingly calm brother. "Uh- Brick, are you okay?" he asked, very concerned.

"I'm _fine_ why do you ask?" Brick growled between clenched teeth. Butch widened his eyes as he noticed Brick's eyes seemed a brighter (and scarier) shade of red.

"Well, uh- you kind of just…b-broke the chain." Brick looked down the chain that was in his tight fists, half of it in each fist. He grunted as he threw the broken chain to the ground and blasted into the night sky, leaving a small crater in the ground.

"No, it's okay, I'll just… hang here until I can feel my upper body" Butch said aloud. Suddenly a rabbit bounced cheerfully next to Butch's face.

"Oh hey little fella. Great, now I have company!" Butch said to no one in particular. The small rabbit wiggled its little nose and opened its mouth.

"Oh fuck! RABBITS HAVE REALLY BIG TEETH!"

* * *

_**Butch:... whoa, tension!**_

_**Me: yep. anyway thanks for reading, you guys keep me writing. just knowing some people like it makes me smile! :) **_

_** I know some people... have been really wanting Butchubbles, and I SWEAR there will be more in the next chapter. but to (hopefully) calm you down a bit, I tossed in a little. Sorry, but next chapter is the start of Butch's determination to go out with Bubbles!**_

_**Butch: I still can't believe you paired me with the blond!**_

_**Me: that's it! I'm done with you Butch, next time it's Butters and I! okay, review if you can, I love to see what my readers think. and come back Friday!**_

**_XOXO_**


	6. New Feelings

_**So sorry for the late night update! there was a dance at school! and it was freakin' awesome!**_

_**Buttercup: PARTY ALL NIGHT!**_

_**Butch: what the hell is she doing here?!**_

_**Me: I told you, you were being replaced! now get out! *pushes Butch through a window***_

_**Buttercup: Read on! enjoy!**_

_***glass breaking, Butch on the verge of tears***_

* * *

"Blossom, hurry up, we're going to be late!" Bubbles called from the living room. Blossom was searching her room for a thin sweater to wear since it wasn't very cold outside. She hastily rummaged through piles of clothes on the shelves in her closet and drawers. With no luck finding her soft pink sweater, Blossom pulled a thicker black sweater from the now messy drawer. She shoved the drawer to close but it wouldn't budge. Blossom stuck her hand into the overstuffed drawer to pull out the object that blocked it. She grunted, pulling out a red hat. Brick's first hat. The very same hat he used to hold so near and dear to himself. The same hat he'd given Blossom as a sign of their friendship so many years ago.

The hat meant a lot to Blossom. The fact that Brick willingly gave her his most prized possession touched her heart. The moment she woke up with the red fabric in her face she realized her counterpart would always be there for her. Only, he wasn't there anymore. He made it clear that he wanted nothing more to do with Blossom, and it stung her worse than any bee ever could, and she was allergic to them.

"BLOSSOM!" Blossom knew that tone of Buttercup's voice. It meant that she'd better get her ass downstairs before Buttercup broke another picture frame. Blossom stuffed the red hat into the drawer and rushed downstairs.

* * *

Butch and Brick were standing on the side of the hallway at school, looking around for their brother.

"Hey guys" Boomer said from behind Butch, making him jump.

"Boomer I almost punched the blond out of your hair! Don't sneak up on me like that! Where were you this morning?" Butch asked.

"In the middle of the night I went to the forest and cried myself to sleep" Boomer replied emotionlessly. Brick and Butch furrowed their brows at Boomer.

"Just kidding" Boomer said with a fake smile. Brick wasn't amused. "You weren't kidding, were you?"

"No not all" Boomer mumbled, hanging his head. "But I'm not giving up that easy. I still have a chance to ask her to the dance, have either of you seen BC?" Brick simply shook his head in silence, obviously still mad about Saturday's events. Butch looked behind Boomer and pointed.

"Haven't seen the girls yet, but I do see Mitch with a bouquet of awfully bright pink roses." Boomer glared in Mitch's direction as he walked passed.

"Hey Mitch, what's with the flowers?" Butch called. Mitch smiled mischievously.

"I'm gonna ask BC to the dance, duh!" he replied. Butch nudged Boomer in the side.

"No you're not!" Boomer called. Mitch turned to see Boomer glaring daggers at him and he took off running at full speed down the hallway. Boomer followed closely behind, but the groups of students standing right in the middle of the hall like it was the normal thing to do made it hard for him to use his super speed.

As Mitch rounded a corner, he spotted Buttercup at her locker, taking out books for her first few classes. Boomer grabbed Mitch's collar and wrestled him for the bouquet of flowers.

"Drop the stupid flowers Mitch!" Boomer demanded.

"In your dreams Bubble Boy!" Mitch countered.

"BUTTERCUP!" both boys shouted. Mitch jerked his hand back, pulling the flowers from Boomer's grip, and shoved him into a trashcan just as Buttercup turned around. Groups of chattering teenagers blocked Boomer's view of Buttercup and Mitch.

Mitch approached Buttercup with a cocky smile and outstretched hand. Buttercup stared at the brightly colored roses with disbelief.

"Buttercup, will you be my date to the dance this Wednesday?" Buttercup furrowed her brows.

"Wednesday? Why is it in the middle of the week?" she questioned.

"We have a four day weekend, Thursday is Staff Development Day, and Friday is some random holiday" Mitch replied.

"Oh, cool" Buttercup said, walking to away to her first class. Mitch perked up at the realization that Buttercup left and chased after her.

"WAIT! You didn't answer my question!" Buttercup turned back to Mitch with a glowering expression.

"Why do you want me to be your date, I wasn't even going to go" Buttercup protested.

"Oh come on BC, it'll be fun. And I want you to be my date because I like you, a lot" Mitch smiled charmingly.

"Shit..." she mumbled so quietly only super hearing could catch it, a look of surprise never leaving her face.

"Did you say something?"

"Nope… uh-" Buttercup was going to turn him down, but noticed the pleading look he gave her. Sure Mitch was very good looking. And sure, he did save her life the other day, but there was something in his eyes that made her mind warn her to leave him in the friend zone, forever! Buttercup sighed, peeking up at Mitch's determined eyes. He wouldn't give up. That is what she concluded. If she said no now, it would open up a gate for him to annoy her to no end until she said yes.

"If I say yes, will you stop looking at me like a fucking creeper?" she asked plainly.

"Absolutely!" Mitch exclaimed happily. He handed her the roses and kissed Buttercup's lips roughly, catching her off guard. He pulled away, winked, and walked in the other direction, leaving a very confused Buttercup behind. She stood there, in the middle of the hall, stunned and confused. He kissed her. But it didn't make her feel any different. Nothing sparked, and she didn't suddenly fall in love with him like in movies. Buttercup glanced down the hall where Mitch walked down, and caught sight of blond hair peeking around the corner. She shook if off and continued to her class.

...

Butch wandered the hallways with Brick trudging behind him. The only reason Brick followed him was so if he ran into Blossom, she would talk to Butch and not him, making things less awkward. Butch, however, was searching for the bouncy blond Powerpuff. He spotted Buttercup looking uneasy and grasping the roses he saw Mitch with earlier. Butch figured Mitch won the little "fight" between him and Boomer.

"Morning BC!" he called. Buttercup stopped dead in her tracks and glared in Butch's direction.

"WHAT?!" she snapped. Butch's cheerful smile instantly dropped.

"Fucking shit, Brick! Buttercup's in a bad mood! Retreat!" he exclaimed, pulling Brick by the arm and behind a trash can. Buttercup rolled her eyes and entered her class.

"You're an idiot" Brick said coldly.

"What's wrong with you? Usually you play along with me when I do stuff like that." Brick ignored Butch's questions. "I'll see you later." With that he left to his own class. Butch hated seeing his brother like this. Ever since the fight, Brick had been quiet and just not himself. He briefly wondered if Blossom was the same way, but spotted the sweet blond he had been looking for all morning.

Bubbles was literally skipping down the hall, sliding out of the way of passing students and teachers with ease. He watched her greet a few friends with a friendly wave and her contagious smile, and gently open her locker. Butch put on a charming smile and made his way to ask Bubbles to the dance. The closer he got to her sticker-filled locker, the more Butch's heart began to pick up in speed. He felt his palms get clammy and his stomach twisted.

By the time Butch was directly behind Bubbles, all he wanted to do was turn around and make a run for it. In his mind, he was supposed to be getting her attention by lightly tapping her shoulder, but the connection between his brain and muscles in his arm seemed to be broken. He stared at the back of Bubbles' shiny blond head and urged his arm to lift, but nothing happened. Seeing his arms simply were not going anywhere, Butch opened his mouth to call her name, but no sound escaped.

Bubbles shut her locker and resumed her skipping to class, not knowing Butch was behind her. He took a deep breath. His heart slowly returned to its normal pace, and he felt less tense. That has never happened before. Asking a girl on a date always came easily to Butch, and he'd never had a problem asking Bubbles before either. Cursing himself, Butch slowly made his way to his first class.

* * *

Brick wandered the empty halls of the school with his hands in the pockets of his favorite red sweatshirt. The bell had rung over twenty minutes ago, and Brick didn't plan on going to his first period anytime soon. His first class of the day used to be the only reason he got up in the morning to go to school, aside from Butch and Boomer being extremely loud in the kitchen attempting to make breakfast. He loved Chemistry. It was simple to understand and Brick actually found a lot of the equations fun to solve.

The one thing that kept Brick from going to class was the fact that Blossom was there. He remembered how Blossom's sweet smile used to force a small smile to grace his lips as well, no matter how tired or annoyed he was. They were always partners when it came to experiments, and sometimes the teacher would tell them to stop raising their hands since they were only ones answering questions.

Now, however, Brick didn't even want to be in the same room as Blossom, let alone sit next to her. He wasn't sure if she would either start up another argument, or just let awkward silence fill the air between them. Either way, Brick didn't want to deal with her.

Brick rounded a corner and found he was near a janitor's closet. The very closet that had a ladder to the roof, where Brick often went when he didn't feel like going to class, or wanted to be alone during lunch. He glanced around, making sure no one was around, and entered the dark closet. Climbing the ladder, Brick remembered bringing Blossom here the first time he convinced her to ditch class with him. It took a lot of talking, but she eventually gave in. As Brick climbed the ladder, he remembered talking about anything and everything. Being best friends, Brick could tell Blossom anything, whether it was embarrassing or personal, and she could do the same with him.

Brick shook his head. There wouldn't be any more times like that. Brick wouldn't breathe another secret to Blossom's listening ear after she swore never to tell. Their friendship was over, and Brick really didn't want to think about all the memories he created with Blossom. The only thing that would keep him from completely despising Blossom, would be the fact that years ago, Blossom trusted Brick and his brothers to behave like normal citizens. She knew that if they turned out to still be evil, Blossom and her sisters would be blamed, but she gave Brick her trust. But that was it. That was the only thing Brick admired about Blossom. Other than that, he hated her.

Brick made it up the long ladder and pushed open the door to the roof. Before he could pull himself onto the roof, Brick froze at the sound of muffled sniffling. Hugging her legs to her chest and head buried in her knees, Blossom sat a couple yards from where Brick was. He was motionless. He'd only seen Blossom cry one other time, when her very first boyfriend tore her heart to shreds. Brick wondered if it was him she was crying about for a moment, and confirmed it probably was seeing the wallet sized picture of the two of them tightly clenched in her hand. It was a picture Brick had put inside his locker, but he ripped it out, letting it hit the floor, when he went to the locker earlier. Blossom must have come across it and broke down.

Suddenly, all of the hate and fury Brick felt towards Blossom eased off a bit. Seeing her so upset and practically bawling her eyes out made Brick a little… guilty. Though, he wasn't sure if it was guilt. He didn't know what it was, but he didn't like it. Brick quickly floated back down the length of the ladder, letting the door slam shut, and rushed out the closet. He felt furious for some reason, and bolted out of the school, completely ditching for the day.

...

Blossom's head shot up at the loud slam. She wiped away her tears and studied the small picture in her hand. After noticing Brick wasn't going to class, she figured the reason and excused herself to the bathroom. She knew he wasn't sick or anything because she saw him briefly before first period started.

On her walk to the restrooms Blossom began to tear up, and when she passed by Brick's locker,she noticed the photograph lying on the floor. She picked it up and saw that it was no accident since the tape was still very sticky. Tears began to spill out of her eyes even more and Blossom rushed into the nearest room, which was the janitor's closet. She recognized it as the closet Brick showed her that lead to the roof, and climbed the long ladder. That's how she ended up there.

Staring at the picture, Blossom felt more heart broken than when her first boyfriend cheated on her. In the photo, Blossom and Brick were hanging up-side-down on the monkey bars at the park, and forming a heart with one of each of their hands. Bubbles took the picture for them, thinking it was one of the cutest things she'd ever seen. Another tear dripped off Blossom's face and onto the picture. She wanted nothing more than to have Brick back. She lost her best friend. And she was pretty sure she lost him for good.

* * *

_**Me: Yay! well there's that chapter! and don't freak out on me! there will be lots more Butchubbles in the next chapter. this was showing his new conflict, and we're getting close to the seriously adorable ButchxBubbles scenes!**_

_**Buttercup: Speaking of Butch, where is he?**_

_**Bubbles: *looking out the window*... I think he's dead...**_

_**Me: *looks out window*... nah. I think I see this chest moving, he's fine. he's just being a drama queen!**_

_**Butch: DRAMA KING!**_

_**Me: whatever. anyway, hope you like it! Sorry the Butchubbles parts seem a limited to anyone, but I SWEAR you will have wonderful moments for them! **_

_**XOXO**_


	7. Unbreakable

**_Hey you great readers! Sorry for another late night update! Couldn't get on the site... was that for everyone? or just me? o well, I hope you enjoy this chapter!_**

**_Butch: Read on!_**

**_Me: how did you get back in here?!_**

* * *

Buttercup violently shoved notebooks into her green and black decorated locker. She sighed as she stared at the bright roses in her hand before, slightly more gently, placing them in the locker too and slamming the door shut and walking toward the cafeteria. She was so confused. Mitch was a great guy. He had always been there for Buttercup, and before she befriended the Rowdyruffs he was her only close friend.

She didn't suspect him of actually being a villain or something, that wasn't even a consideration. But there was something about him that warned Buttercup to steer clear of Mitch as a potential boyfriend. She had to admit, however, he was great and he'd even grown up to be quite good looking, but something about going to the dance with him felt… wrong. Like, maybe Mitch would-

"BC! I need your help!" Buttercup was snapped at out of her thoughts and faced a very anxious Butch. She pushed aside her own doubts for another time, her counterpart needed her. Buttercup would do anything for Butch, and he would do the same for her.

"I'll help you if you promise to take a breath-mint later" Buttercup teased. Butch glared at her.

"My breath smells like rainbows and fucking unicorns!" he exclaimed. Buttercup furrowed her eyebrows in amusement and waited for Butch to explain what was wrong.

"Okay, so I went to ask Bubbles to the dance and-"

"Wait, wait, wait, wait! Slow it down Butchie-Boy! You want to go to the dance with Bubbles?" Buttercup interrupted.

"Yeah, why is that so hard to believe?" Butch questioned.

"Well, I never thought you were ever serious about it. Have you always been serious when you asked her?" Butch nodded meekly and Buttercup sighed in amazement. She gestured for Butch to continue.

"Well… I froze up. I couldn't move or speak a single syllable. I just froze, and that has never happened, not ever and I have no clue what's wrong with me." Buttercup burst into laughter in her mind. It was amusing to see that Butch, the biggest player in the school, was nervous. She began to explain Butch's new emotion to him, when the sweet-natured blond came into view. Butch gasped, grasping onto Buttercup's arms and holding her in front of him while he crouched behind her.

"There she is, don't let her see me or I'll make a fool out of myself!" he whispered. Buttercup was going to tell him he already was making a fool of himself, but Bubbles had already approached.

"Hey Butters! H-" Bubbles pointed at the black spike that peeked from behind Buttercup in a questioning manner. Buttercup simply shrugged as if to say "_don't worry about it._"

"Uh, well I won't be home until about fix tonight, I'm going to help decorate for the dance. Could you tell the Professor when you get home so he doesn't worry?" Bubbles asked.

"Sure, see you in P.E." Buttercup said as Bubbles returned to bouncing down the halls going who knows where. Butch peeked up from his place behind Buttercup.

"Do you think she saw me?" he asked. Buttercup rolled her eyes.

"No Butch, you're a master of stealth and there is no way in hell she saw you" Buttercup stated plainly. Butch sighed in relief, again Buttercup rolled her eyes.

"Aw, it wooks wike widdle Butchie is nervous" Buttercup teased with a smirk. Butch scoffed at the assumption.

"Uh no, Butch Jojo does not get nervous!" he stated, folding his arms in a cocky manner.

"Oh, okay. Well good 'cause Bubbles is right behind you" Buttercup pointed behind Butch. He flinched and tried to run away but smashed right into the wall of lockers, hard. Buttercup tried her best to contain her laughter as Butch fell to the floor holding his face in pain.

"Okay first of all, how did that happen? You should have known those lockers were there. And two, my point exactly, face it Butchie-Boy, you're nervous. It happens to the best of us, well except me of course. Don't stress, just be yourself and try not to worry about what her answer will be." Buttercup helped Butch to his feet and left to the cafeteria while he leaned against the lockers.

"Stupid emotions."

* * *

Later on that day, Boomer sat at his navy blue desk at home with a text book and worksheet in front of him. He slowly read through a paragraph, but not registering the information. Boomer groaned in frustration. He couldn't focus on his homework. Not when the girl he liked was going to a dance with his friend. Mitch knew all too well how Boomer felt about Buttercup, but he didn't seem to care in the slightest. Boomer closed the textbook roughly, hoping to release some frustration.

As much as he wanted to punch Mitch hard enough to break his nose, he couldn't. Boomer knew it probably just drive Buttercup even further away from him, especially if she really did like Mitch. But at the same time, Boomer knew how much it would pain him to see Buttercup walking down the halls in Mitch's arms.

"You mean noodle arms" Butch said from the doorway of Boomer's bedroom. Boomer jumped at the sound of his voice, but realized he must have been talking aloud without realizing it. Butch let himself further into the room and sat on Boomer's bed.

"You have got to work on that habit, it could cause you trouble." He said. Boomer shrugged and put his unfinished homework in his backpack.

"Speaking of trouble, has Brick come home yet?" Boomer asked. Butch's eyes widened and he shook his head. The two brothers exchanged knowing glances and started to leave in search of Brick. Before they were able to make it out of Boomer's room, a red stripe of color blew passed the window. Butch and Boomer rushed out to Brick's room.

"Where the hell have you been Leader Boy?" Butch questioned, clearly annoyed. Brick remained unfazed and rolled his eyes.

"All you need to know is that I think the stupid monkey is up to something." Brick said.

"What makes you think that?" Boomer asked.

"I saw him hand the members of the Gangreen Gang something and they shook hands like they were making a deal. I think we should skip school tomorrow and investigate; it'll give us a chance to show the Powerpuff Girls that we can just as much good alone." He explained. Butch sighed and collapsed on Brick's bed.

"Well, see there is a problem with that…" Brick only glared in reply. Butch smiled meekly but continued, "Tomorrow I actually need to go to school so I can ask Bubbles to the dance." Brick was ready to protest but froze with confusion. Boomer also stared at Butch with amazement.

"You want to go the dance with Little Blue?" Brick exclaimed.

"Why is that _so_ hard to believe?!" Butch demanded, standing from Brick's bed.

"Oh chill out. You should know the answer, because you never stick with one girl for too long and you better not break her heart" Brick hissed.

"I'm not; I've been trying to get her to go on a date with me since the beginning of the year!" Butch shouted. A stinging sensation rang throughout Butch's cheek and he realized Boomer glaring at him.

"Lower your voice! Mom is sleeping!" he demanded. Butch was ready to start a fight when Brick took both of them by their arms and flipped them onto their backs, each groaning in pain.

"You two have put off my command long enough, we have a serious issue here and all you can think about is the Powerpuff Girls." Brick said lowly. Butch was the first to stand up and he glared at Brick.

"Stop calling them that. You never referred to them like that; it's always been "the girls". And by the way, you can quit letting that argument with Blossom bother you. We don't have to prove anything to them. You know you would do anything for Blossom and her sisters, no matter how mad you think you are." With that, Butch left to his own room, with Boomer right behind him to his own.

Brick could feel the heat in his knuckles as he clenched his fists. "Fine! I'll go by myself! I don't need you two or Blossom!" he said loud enough for his brothers' super hearing to catch, but not loud enough to wake Ms. Keane.

"Don't you mean: _'or the girls'_?" Boomer's voice sounded from next door, mockingly, and it took every ounce of restraint Brick had not to fly into his room and kick his ass. He bolted out of his bedroom window and slammed it shut with full force.

* * *

The next day, Butch paced up and down the halls at school near Bubbles' locker. He played out multiple scenarios in his head of how things could turn out. He could ask her, and she could say either yes or no... Or a monster could attack the school before he had the chance. Butch shook his head; that was a stupid scenario, although it wasn't impossible.

Suddenly the school bell rang, and the crowd of chattering students slowly disappeared into classrooms. Now Butch was getting worried. Where was she? Was she not coming to school? Butch sighed and turned a corner to go to class. Maybe he could go to her house after school and ask her then.

Butch stopped dead in his tracks when he heard the sound of skipping ballet flats and soft, cheerful humming. He peered back around the corner to see Bubbles just getting to her locker. Butch took a deep breath and put on his best smile, and approached her locker.

"Did Baby Blue sleep in this morning?" he asked jokingly, managing to make Bubbles' already bright smile widen.

"Is Badass Butch ditching first period… again?" Bubbles teased. Butch chuckled, but remembered that Bubbles wasn't very fond of "bad boys", so he quickly made up a reasonable excuse.

"No, I was actually just waiting for you" he said charmingly. It really wasn't a lie; he had been waiting for her all morning.

"Well your class is all the way on the other side of the hall, and mine is right around the corner, so I'll see you at lunch" she shut her locker and began to walk away.

"Wait!" Butch gripped Bubbles' long sleeved shirt and lightly yanked her back. "Uh- I actually wanted to ask you something." He stuttered. Butch's heart beat picked up as he looked into Bubbles' bright and captivating blue eyes. He felt himself tense up and opened his mouth to speak but, again, nothing came out. Butch replayed Buttercup's words in his head and relaxed. He looked down at the blond in front of him, who looked concerned for him, and took a deep breath.

"Bubbles, would you please be my date to the dance tomorrow?" the words flowed out of his mouth with ease.

Bubbles giggled mischievously to herself. Butch really wasn't going to stop until she said yes. With as many times as he had asked, she began to think he was serious about it, really serious. He probably expected her to say no again, and then he would go and easily find another date like he'd done many times before. But this time it would be different.

"Okay" she agreed simply. _"Bet he didn't see that coming!"_ she thought.

"I knew you would say that, but if you could just give me a- Wait did you say yes?" Bubbles nodded shyly and Butch's eyes lit up with excitement. He did a fist-pump, floating off the ground slightly until Bubbles grabbed his collar and pulled him to her level. Her once innocent and sweet icy blue eyes were now serious and fierce.

"But if you stand me up or break my heart at the dance, you and I will have a problem" she said in such a threatening manner that virtually scared the crap out of Butch. He nodded in understanding and Bubbles gently released her grip on his shirt. She held up her pinky finger like it was serious business. Butch stared at it, slightly confused.

"Don't tell me you don't know what a pinky promise is" Bubbles sighed.

"No, of course I know what it is, but-"

"Your pinky may be the smallest finger, but it holds the biggest secrets and promises. You break a pinky swear with me, you lose my trust, and I never break my pinky swears." She stated, her pinky finger still in the air. Butch smiled and intertwined his finger with Bubbles'.

"I, Butch Jojo, pinky swear to be at your house at five-thirty tomorrow to pick you up" Butch declared.

"And I, Bubbles Utonium, pinky swear to be your date for the night" Bubbles added with a giggle. Their eyes met, and they held a gaze for a few moments before Bubbles blushed and released Butch's pinky. She turned away to get to class, "I'll see you later, okay?"

Butch nodded and did multiple fist-pumps in the air once she turned the corner. He silently cheered to himself and kicked his feet up in short lived skips. With one quick kick, Butch hit his foot on the lockers in front of him causing him to cry out and hold his aching foot. Bubbles peeked around the corner and witnessed Butch's misfortune, and tried to contain her giggles.

Butch looked up and spotted her, his heart skipped a beat.

"Oh… you saw that?" he laughed nervously and backed out of the hall, tripping and falling over a trashcan on the way. Butch quickly got to his feet and limped as fast as he could out of sight before he could embarrass himself anymore.

Once he was missing from her view, Bubbles grinned and continued to her class.

_"Maybe he's not playing games…"_

* * *

_**Well, there you have it! **_

_**Butch: please review!**_

_**Me: yes, please do... but Butch... WHY ARE YOU IN HERE AGAIN!?**_

_**Buttercup: *pushes Butch out of chair and sits down* Review... please **_

_**Me: thanks for reading! :D**_

_**XOXO**_


	8. Nothing But Leaders

_**...Whoa! this is a long Chapter! over 3000 words! :D yay!**_

_**Buttercup: Enjoy! this unnecessarily long pile of-**_

_**Me: I'm gonna kick you out now! maybe i'll get the Blues in on this instead!**_

* * *

It was 5:48 in the morning and Blossom lay awake in her bed, waiting for the alarm clock to go off. She wanted to take the next ten minutes to just relax. Of course, however, her hotline bracelet had to go off at that very moment. Blossom groaned and threw the blankets off and forced herself out of bed. After taking a look at the bracelet, Blossom kicked the base of Buttercup's bed and made her way to the closet. Buttercup shot her head up, her hair a tangled mess, and glared at Blossom's retreating figure.

"What the hell Bloss!? The alarm hasn't gone off yet!" she mumbled, burying her face into her pillows.

"Mojo is up to something, get up now BC!" Blossom commanded from inside the closet. Buttercup glanced at the clock and groaned loudly.

"I'm gonna kick that monkey's ass for this! He couldn't wait ten minutes?! Ten minutes is a big difference when it comes to sleep, all I ask for is ten damn minutes of rest-" Buttercup complained, getting out of bed. Blossom peeked out from the closet and saw Bubbles sitting up in her bed and rubbing her blue eyes. Blossom always woke up Buttercup first if the alarm didn't wake them. Buttercup's complaints were always loud enough to wake Bubbles.

The three quickly got dressed and flew into the sky towards Mojo's lair.

"What villain gets up this early anyway?" Buttercup growled, refusing to stop omplaining. Bubbles and Blossom simply ignored her, figuring she'd shut up once she got her hands on Mojo. The three girls burst through a window of the lair in fighting stances, but immediately let their guard down at the sight in front of them.

Brick, Butch, and Boomer were scattered around the lab and appeared to be fighting against the Gangreen Gang. Brick was the first to notice the sudden appearance of the girls and glared in Blossom's direction.

"What are you three doing here?!" he growled. Blossom fixed her own glare right back at Brick. She held her wrist up and pointed at the pink bracelet that was tightly wrapped around it.

"The bracelets, of course. Now maybe you guys should leave, my girls and I have this under control." Blossom said firmly, her arms crossed over her chest and her eyes never leaving Brick's.

"No way! My boys and I were here first, and we intend to finish what we started." Brick sent a punch at Snake, who easily countered it, grabbing his fist and tossing Brick half way across the room. Blossom shook her head and glanced around for Mojo. She spotted him in the corner of the lab with tools at hand and blueprints scattered around him like a child and its toys.

Before Blossom could question him, Buttercup gripped the monkey's shirt and brought him to her level. "Alright monkey! What is so important that you had to start so early in the morning?!" she shouted. Mojo simply pulled a device from his pocket and zapped Buttercup with it, causing her to drop him and sent her back a few feet. Electricity sparks rang throughout her body as she lay still on the floor. Bubbles rushed to Buttercup's side and held her up while Blossom bolted to wipe the cocky smile off Mojo's face. Before she was able to get close enough, two Gangreen Gang members blocked Blossom's path.

Ace stood with an evil grin and lifted his booted foot, effortlessly kicking Blossom to lie next to Buttercup. Blossom glanced around; Buttercup was slowly making it back to her feet, and Brick and his brothers were preoccupied by the rest of the Gangreen Gang.

"What, getting too old to fight your own battles Mojo?" she teased.

"I, Mojo Jojo, will never be too old to fight my battles!" Mojo began; Bubbles rolled her eyes and braced herself for the long speech. "I, Mojo Jojo, simply had to make sure that you, the Powerpuff Girls and the Rowdyruff Boys, who have been my biggest failures ever by the way!-"

"Hey!" the Boys shouted simultaneously.

"Would stay out of my way while I, Mojo Jojo, worked on my newest invention to defeat you, the Powerpuff Girls and the Rowdyruff Boys, who have been my biggest fai-"

"No need to insult us like that again!" Butch interrupted, clearly annoyed by Mojo's rambling.

"But I don't understand, why chose the Gangreen Gang, they usually suck at fighting" Bubbles asked, earning glares from each Gangreen Gang member.

"In order to ensure no interruptions while I worked, I hired this gang since they were so easily persuaded. Then, to ensure my success even further, I quickly invented weapons, that would enhance their fighting skills and keep you six away from my lab. But when I caught this little brat snooping around" Mojo angrily pointed a furry finger at Brick, "I expected his brothers to come after him, but not you three too!" he pointed a frustrated figure at the girls and then glared daggers at Ace. "Nobody bothered to tell me that they were fighting as a team again!"

Before Ace could explain, both Blossom and Brick spoke up. "We're not." The room fell silent as the two stared intensely at one another.

"But I'm not going anywhere until we finish this, alone" Brick said coldly. He gave his brothers a gesture that they knew meant it was time to fight. Blossom turned her attention back to Bubbles and Buttercup, who had completely recovered from the electric shock.

"Alright girls, let's go. No team maneuvers with any of the boys; it's time to show them that we can still fight without their help." Blossom whispered, Bubbles and Buttercup nodded hesitantly, and they bolted in various directions to attack.

Blossom darted right for Ace. She punched and kicked, but only managed to hit air. Ace dodged each blow with ease before giving Blossom a cocky grin and sending her across the room with one swing. Bubbles and Buttercup weren't having much luck either, as they too were sent crashing into a pile of old machine parts.

"Blossom, this isn't working. Maybe we should consider teaming up with the boys just one more time?" Bubbles pleaded as she struggled out of the pile of parts.

"No way! We can do this; we just need to work together like old times!" Blossom assured. She flew above her sisters and gestured for them to follow. "Come on, Starburst Ray, at Big Billy and Grubber" she commanded, pointing down to where the two Gangreen Gang members stood clueless. The girls combined their hand-energy beams into one big beam aimed directly at Big Billy and Grubber.

None of the girls had noticed the Rowdyruff Boys approaching to attack Big Billy and the beam was only yards away from them.

"Guys! Watch out!" Brick yelled when he saw the upcoming beam. On instinct, each boy used their own hand-energy ray to block the impact, forming the exact same beam as the girls'. The two beams collided and cancelled out from the opposing forces. Both teams were sent flying back into the walls of the lab. Brick darted back to the ground, face red with anger.

"Hey! Watch where you're shooting!" he shouted to Blossom as his brothers stood at his side.

"Why don't you boys just go home? I told you, we have this under contro-" Blossom's argument was cut short when Little Arturo shot a ray gun at the girls. The ray emitted a red beam that surrounded all three girls, weakening them. Before Brick could grasp what was happening, he and his brothers were attacked by the ray as well.

The red energy left each teen dazed and weak, giving the Gangreen Gang an opportunity. With powerful kicks and punches the super-powered teens were thrown through the walls of the lab, and into an alley.

"This stinks!" Buttercup complained. Dust clouds were formed as everyone struggled out of their personal craters. Brick was the first to fly above the group in a leader-like stance.

"Come on guys! We can do this. We just need to get our heads in the g-"

"What we need is to work as a team again…" Butch interrupted Brick with a very annoyed tone.

"Butch is right, we were always better as one big team. Can't you two just swallow your pride just this once so we can end this?" Bubbles pleaded at Blossom. Brick and Blossom eyed one another, pure anger burning in each of their inhumanly colored eyes. Blossom glanced at her sisters, they looked a mess and Buttercup seemed like she may pass out any second… drama queen. She sighed nonetheless and softened her gaze at Brick.

Brick noticed Blossom's harsh glare ease up and sighed in defeat. "Fine, I suppose it's for the best."

"We've come to rely on each other more. We can't break up now." Blossom said, "But we also need a better strategy, even six against five it's like we're evenly matched." Brick thought for a moment, as did the others, but couldn't think of anything other than simply fighting.

"I got it!" Boomer exclaimed, making everyone jump. "Just a couple of weeks ago, the Gangreen Gang's fighting was horrible, as usual. And not even Mojo could have taught them how to fight that good in such a short amount of time."

Blossom's eyes lit up. "So that means that Mojo must have invented something to enhance their skills…"

"And all we need to do is find the device-" Brick continued.

"And destroy it? I'm in!" Butch finished eagerly. Brick rolled his eyes at his brother but nodded as clarification.

"I think we should have a fantastic entrance now that we are a team again!" Bubbles excitedly suggested.

"And what's your idea of a 'fantastic entrance'?" Buttercup asked. Bubbles giggled and took hold of Boomer's hands and began to spin in circles.

"Counterpart Vortex!" she called from the small blue tornado that was being created between her and Boomer. Butch shouted out a cheer, clearly ready to have fun and fight all at the same time, and grabbed Buttercup's hands. Buttercup couldn't help but laugh as her and Butch began to spin, creating a small tornado of various shades of green.

Blossom giggled at the fun-loving nature of her sisters, but when she turned to Brick, her smile faltered slightly. Brick sighed loudly, but put his hands out for Blossom to grip. She expected Brick's grasp to be tight and anger filled, but instead it was gentle and comforting, like her hands were meant to be in his…

Blossom shook the thought off, she didn't like him like that. They weren't even friends anymore… or were they? She decided to push aside the argument in her head for later, she had to focus. A vortex consisting of multiple shades of red and pink surrounded her and Brick, and they guided their vortex towards Mojo's lab.

The three colorful tornados burst a huge hole in the side of the lair, and the Gangreen Gang didn't even have the chance to run for their lives. The force of the mini tornados blew the Gang around the lair as if they were ragdolls. Mojo clung to his invention, which was still in progress, hoping he'd be able to stay out of the fight long enough to finish.

The colored winds cleared up and the six heroes took advantage of the Gang's surprise. Bubbles floated over a pile of metal scraps where Ace stumbled out of.

"You think your little tornados are enough to beat us!?" he questioned. Before Bubbles had the chance reply, Brick appeared and kicked Ace in the air towards Bubbles. She took the opportunity and smacked Ace straight down into the metal floor, causing him to black out. Bubbles and Brick approached Ace's unconscious body and looked for anything that could have enhanced his fighting skills.

"Brick, look" Bubbles pointed at a metal brace that strapped around Ace's neck. The small brace was full of blinking lights and monitors. Brick simply used his laser vision to break the metal.

"Guys! Check their necks for a brace, and DESTROY IT!" Bubbles called. Blossom smirked at Mojo.

"Really Mojo? An electronic brace to enhance their fighting skills? That's so predictable." she teased him, moving to attack. Butch shot passed Blossom in a dark green stripe, struggling to keep Big Billy still long enough to melt the brace. Blossom rushed to Butch's side as he held Big Billy against the wall, but struggled to steady her aim. She focused her sight on the brace and managed to cut clean through the metal without as much as a scratch on Big Billy. Butch smiled gratefully at Blossom before knocking Big Billy out cold with a single punch and tossing him toward Ace with ease.

Buttercup gripped Little Arturo by his hair and ripped the brace right off his neck and tossed him like a bowling ball. She smiled triumphantly and looked around for another gang member she could attack.

"Hey BC, could you toss me that ball?" Buttercup looked up to see Boomer holding his electric baseball bat. She glanced around, not seeing what ball he was talking about, but then it clicked. She smiled mischievously at Mojo Jojo, who looked up at her, still holding onto his invention and seeming scared out of his mind.

"Which one? Steel or Furry?" she asked with a smirk. Boomer thought for a moment.

"Steel" he called. Buttercup pried the large device from Mojo's grasp and easily tossed up to where Boomer floated. Boomer waited for the perfect moment and swung his bat, electrocuting the device before it crashed through the wall.

To Buttercup, everything seemed to move in slow motion. Electricity sparks surrounded Boomer, blowing his blond hair over his deep blue eyes. She found herself mesmerized by those eyes. They were so dark, but at the same time they seemed to shine. Buttercup noticed how heroic he floated in the air; his bat resting on his shoulder (not hurting him because he could control it), and his hand on his hip with pride as he looked off into the distance.

That's when it hit her. Boomer wasn't just the youngest Rowdyruff. He wasn't just her silly blond friend that helped defeat villains. No, Boomer was just as strong and just as great as his brothers. But, he also had that sweet and caring nature that made him such a great guy, a great friend. Maybe even-

"Alright BC, I'm ready for the next one!" he called out to Buttercup, snapping her out of her dazed stare. She replaced her smirk with a genuine smile, one that she was pretty sure made him blush a bit. Buttercup grabbed Mojo by the collar of his cape and prepared to toss him.

"Hey Bubs! I'm pretty confident, but could you just make sure my "ball" ends up where it needs to be?" Boomer pointed his bat at Mojo, and Bubbles immediately understood. She flew a few miles across town and stopped near the Townsville prison.

Boomer used his super sight to see that Bubbles was in place. He nodded at Buttercup, who pitched Mojo like a baseball. His cries were heard, but ignored as Boomer swung his bat, sending Mojo right into his prison cell.

"AND HE'S OUT!" Bubbles' voice could be heard from the lair. Boomer smiled triumphantly, tossing his bat into the air where it vanished, and cheered as if he'd just won a major game. Buttercup realized one more thing; she'd definitely save a song for him at the dance later.

The Gangreen Gang was shoved into police cars and taken to jail. The six heroes stood at the bottom of the volcano in the park, watching the police cars leave.

"This is so great! We're a team again! And we saved the day! Again!" Bubbles cheered, bouncing up and down.

"Bubs, I know you're happy, but we really need to work on our individual fighting." Blossom stated. Butch rolled his eyes.

"Oh come on Bloss, we don't need to-"

"She's right Butch." Everyone's attention was now on Brick. He noticed how confused his brothers seemed and sighed.

"For about eight years, we've been a team. And while being a team is great, we can't rely on each other this much. We have to be prepared if there comes a time when we are separated. If we can barely handle the Gangreen Gang on our own, we have issues. Blossom is right." Blossom allowed a small smile to form.

"But for now, I say we skip the rest of school, go home, and get some well-deserved sleep" Brick commanded his brothers.

"Great!" Butch shouted, shoving Boomer out of his was with a chuckle and taking off home before Brick could utter another word.

"Well, I guess we're off to the training room! I call it first Bubbles!" Buttercup declared, followed by an annoyed whine from Bubbles.

"Wait what?" Blossom questioned before her sisters flew off. Buttercup and Bubbles stopped in their tracks and looked back, confused.

"One of your leaders gave you an order. I'm not the only one who can give commands" she said. Bubbles smiled, glad to see Blossom accepting it.

"Don't have to tell me twice!" Buttercup said, bolting in the air for home. Bubbles followed close behind.

Boomer wrapped his arms around Blossom and Brick. "This is great! We have the team back together, the dance is tonight, and we're all friends again!" Blossom couldn't help but let her smile widen a little.

"Friends?" Brick stopped Boomer before he could say another word. Blossom's smile immediately turned to a confused frown.

"We're all a part of a team again, that has nothing to do with friendship." Brick stated coldly, his red eyes set in a glare at Blossom. She pretended not to be hurt by his words. It took all of her courage not to let a tear escape her eyes. She matched Brick's glare and acted as if she was thinking the same thing the whole time.

"Exactly, our friendship still remains nonexistent" she added, and darted off before she was seen with tears. Brick flew home with Boomer not far behind.

Blossom entered her room through the window. Buttercup and Bubbles were already fast asleep. She took her place on her own bed and tried to let rest take over, but the pain of truly losing her best friend was keeping her awake. And it was torture.

* * *

_**Me: Yay, another chapter done! I just wanted to say, thanks to all my loyal readers out there! you guys are what keeps me writing (plus my never-ending imagination of Powerpuff fanfiction!) And happy Valentine's day! if I had planed this better, I would have posted the dance chapter today, but I didn't so yeah...**_

_**Thanks for reading and please review if you can! :)**_

_**XOXO**_


	9. Steady Part 1- Out of Balance

_**Brick and Blossom: Hello!**_

_**Me:... where are the Blues? I said I wanted the Blues this chapter!**_

_**Blossom:...**_

_**Brick:... well... the-uh... the Blues couldn't... make it...**_

_**Me:... hmmm... i'll deal with this later. anyway, THIS CHAPTER IS SO DAMN LONG! it would have been even longer if I didn't split it apart. yep, that's right, the dance chapter was so long I felt the need to split it up into two parts! So this does NOT cover the entire dance!**_

**Enjoy!**

* * *

"Blossom! Wake up!" Blossom's eyes shot open instantly, and she was greeted by two bright blue eyes that were half done with eye makeup.

"What time is it?" she asked, yawning as she pushed her pink comforter away.

"It's 3:30, we have about two hours until we should leave for the dance" Bubbles said, moving back in front of the mirror to finish her makeup. Buttercup entered the room with a cup of noodles, uninterested in the long process Bubbles made of getting ready.

"Oh good, there you are BC. Let me start your hair while Blossom takes a shower" Bubbles set down the bottle of mascara and plugged in her blue curler. Blossom made her way to the bathroom to take a shower as her little sister said.

"What's wrong with my hair now? I always wear it like this" Buttercup gestured toward her black hair, which simply went straight down to a few inches above her mid-back.

"That's the point! You should change it up for this dance, especially since you have a date this time!" Bubbles protested. Buttercup groaned loudly as she stuffed another forkful of noodles into her mouth.

"Don't remind me!" she mumbled.

"STOP TALKING WITH YOUR MOUTH FULL!" Blossom's annoyed tone was heard from down the hall. Bubbles giggled as Buttercup rolled her eyes.

"I thought you wanted to go with Mitch. He even got you flowers!" Buttercup sighed and set down her cup of noodles.

"I don't know. I can't help but feel like it was a mistake to agree, but I'll go because I really have nothing better to do." She said, sitting down on her bed. Bubbles thought for a moment, trying to make sure she could word her next statement right.

"Well, all I have to say is; there is someone you probably would have been better off going with." Buttercup perked up in interest.

"Really? Who?" she asked.

"If it was meant to be you'll find out soon!" Bubbles giggled as she skipped into the closet. Buttercup was ready to push the issue further, but Bubbles bounced out of the closet with green fabric draped over her arm.

"What's that?" she asked suspiciously.

"It's your dress!" Bubbles said cheerfully.

"Oh come on, isn't it bad enough you're making me change my hair style. There is no way I'm wearing a dress!" Buttercup argued. Bubbles held the dress so her sister had a better view of it. Black rose lace was attached to the dark green fabric which flowed out slightly in a short ball gown style. A black ribbon tied around the waist and formed a bow in the front next to a black satin rose. Buttercup stared at the dress in awe for a moment, surprised at how much she liked it.

"You're lucky you know me really well. Fine I'll wear the stupid dress!" she sighed. Bubbles squealed with happiness and delicately placed the dress on Buttercup's bed. She then picked up her curler and approached Buttercup to work on her hair.

"Bubs, please don't burn my face with that thing!"

_**There used to be three tiny powerpuff hearts here to break off the sections...**_

_Later With the Boys…_

"WHAT TIME IS IT!?" Brick cringed at the ear-piercing shout from Butch.

"It's five-fifteen, and stop yelling like an idiot, you are literally only a few yards away from me!" Brick demanded. He and Boomer sat calmly on the couch in their living room, watching T.V. while Butch rushed around the house to get ready. Boomer had been ready for the dance for over an hour, wearing black pants, a white button-up shirt, and a black jacket with a navy blue collar. Brick simply need to attach his red tie to complete his black button-up shirt and pants.

"Boomer, you're Bubbles' counterpart, what type of flower does she like?" Butch gripped Boomer by his shirt, looking like more of a psycho than he already was.

"I don't know, maybe a blue rose" Butch dropped Boomer and darted for the front door.

"I have to go find a flower shop!" he shouted, flinging the door open.

"Butch…" Brick called plainly.

"What?" Butch turned back franticly.

"I don't know about you, but I wouldn't leave the house until I put some pants on." Butch glanced down to find he was still in his boxers. He calmed down a bit and gently shut the door before darting back to his room.

"I swear I'll never understand how he got Bubbles to say yes" Boomer stated, standing up and grabbing his keys. Butch ran down the stairs, now wearing black pants, and toward the coffee table.

"Where are mom's keys?" he asked. Boomer held the key ring up with one finger in a taunting manner.

"Come on guys. Let me take mom's car, it's nicer!" Butch pleaded.

"Yeah, and that's why we're taking it. Take our car" Brick said, taking the keys from Boomer and heading for the door.

"The two brothers without dates get the good car" Boomer called as he followed Brick. Butch sighed in annoyance and chased after his brothers. When he got outside, they were already beginning to drive away.

"But you guys can fly!" Butch grumbled, knowing they couldn't hear him. He turned to where the car they shared would be parked and jumped at what he saw. The old junky car was covered in egg yolks and shells and it looked like there were nails all over the tires. Butch suppressed a scream of anger and horror as he slowly approached his poor car. He pulled a sheet of notebook paper, which was taped on the windshield, off. Words were scribbled on the paper and could only be from a group of furious teenage girls.

_No Good, man-whore!_

There was no way Butch was going to even try to drive that car.

**_Again, just pretend there are tiny powerpuff hearts here_**

Bubbles sat patiently on the couch in her living room. She mindlessly played with the loose edges of her blue, knee-length spaghetti strap dress. It fitted around her waist and easily flowed with the slightest of movement, and was complete with a dark gray ribbon that tied into a bow in the back. She wore silver three inch heels and her hair was in tight curls, resting on her shoulder in a side ponytail.

Buttercup entered the room with a small smile. Her hair was in tight curls, and she had even allowed Bubbles to tie half of it up in a ponytail and clip a green rose to the hair tie. Bubbles' attention was then drawn to the black converse Buttercup wore. She noticed Bubbles' skepticism while joining her on the couch.

"You got me to wear a dress, changed my hair, and convinced me to wear this annoying lip gloss. This is where I draw the line!" Bubbles huffed in defeat, but decided not to push Buttercup any further.

"When is Mitch picking you up?" she asked.

Buttercup's nose crinkled at the mention of his name. "He's not, I have to meet him there. And I have no clue how since I can't fly in this dress!"

"You can ride with me Butters. The Professor said I could use his car." Buttercup and Bubbles' heads shot up to see Blossom walking down the stairs. Her black heels clicked on the floor as she walked towards her sisters. She wore a soft pink strapless dress with a ruffled skirt and a thick black ribbon around her waist. Bubbles had curled her hair in beach waves that made it look slightly shorter than it was.

"Cool, thanks Bloss" Buttercup said.

"Wow Blossom, you look so pretty!" Bubbles cooed.

"Thanks Bubs" Blossom thanked her sister with a sweet hug. "Come on Buttercup, we should get going. Bubbles, how are you getting to the dance?"

"Butch should be here in about ten minutes" Bubbles replied, taking a look at the clock that hung on the wall.

"Okay, but if he stands you up, just call me and I'll take care of everything" Buttercup stood from the couch and began to follow Blossom. Bubbles nodded, but seriously hoped that wouldn't be the case.

**_Tiny Powerpuff Hearts!_**

_Tick…_

_Tick…_

_Tick…_

_5:56_

Bubbles slumped down in her seat with a sigh. He was almost thirty minutes late. She began to wonder if Butch would even come. She glanced at the blue cell phone in her hand, contemplating whether to call one of her sister. No. If she called, Buttercup would go on a rampage and Butch could very well end up dead.

She was actually very disappointed. Part of her only said yes to surprise Butch, beat him at his own silly game. But a small part of her was really looking forward to going to the dance with him. Bubbles sighed again and stood up to go to her room. She was tired of sitting on the couch, waiting for someone who wasn't coming.

Suddenly, harsh knocks were heard from the front door. Bubbles rushed to the front door and glared through the peephole to see spiky black hair. She opened the door with a hard glare that immediately turned to a look of concern when she took a better look at Butch.

He was panting heavily, his forest green vest was slipping off his shoulders, and his black button-up shirt seemed to be torn slightly at the edges of the sleeves.

Before Bubbles could even say a word, Butch held up the most beautiful flower she'd ever seen. "I-I know I'm really late… But Brick and Boomer took mom's car, a group of girls egged my car, I rushed to find flowers but there were no shops close enough…" Butch took a deep, over-exaggerated breath. "Then I was running here and I passed a yard with these flowers-" he gestured toward the blue flower in his hand.

"And there was a sign that said 'please help yourself'" he mocked the signs words with a sophisticated tone. "And I have no clue who does weird stuff like that. But I went to pick one and this crazy little rat of a dog ran out of the gate and attacked me! The little weasel chased me for five blocks and I didn't think to fly until I was almost here. But the dog is gone, I'm here, and when I saw this flower it made me think of you because it's unique and really pretty and blu-"

Bubbles clamped her hand over Butch's mouth and giggled. "Okay, it's okay! I'm not mad and you can relax" she said calmingly. She lowered her hand and fixed Butch's vest.

"Now, what type of flower is this? I think it's my new favorite!" Bubbles said with a cheeky grin that made Butch smile with her. He glanced down at the round blue plant in his hand. The deep shade of blue most likely matched Boomer's eyes, and the small amount of white in the center seemed to make the flower even more beautiful.

"This is a moon flower. A blue moon flower to be exact. I think it fits your personality perfectly. I guess it's poisonous if you eat it, so like you, it's pretty on the outside, but if you mess with it… it'll fight back." Butch handed the flower to Bubbles, and she held it gently. She jumped up and took Butch in a tight hug that made his heat skip a beat.

"Hold on okay?" Before Butch could nod his head, Bubbles' blue streak bounced around the house. She stopped in mid-air, looking around the living room with an annoyed expression. She grunted before darting down into the Professor's lab.

Butch could hear glass breaking, the Professor complaining, and Bubbles calling out her apologies as she flew up the stairs with one of the Professor's unused beakers that would now be used as a vase. She appeared in front of Butch again ready to leave.

"Okay, we can go now… um, how are we getting there?" Bubbles asked.

Butch chuckled meekly rubbing the back of his head. "Well since I don't have a car… we're gonna have to walk…" Bubbles stared blankly at him.

"That's a pretty far walk" she stated softly.

"Well I'm not letting you fly in a dress, and there's no other way. But I promise once we get there, I'll make it the best night ever!" Butch pleaded.

"…Okay, let's get going then" Bubbles said, closing the door behind her. Butch smiled as they began their long walk down the street.

**_Tiny Hearts!_**

Boomer had a strong need to punch something. Or someone. He sat at a table next to Brick, watching the large crowd of dancing teenagers. One particular couple kept Boomer's attention though. Boomer's grip on his cup of punch tightened as Mitch slid his arms around Buttercup's waist.

He wanted more than anything to walk right up to them, punch Mitch straight in the face, and confess his feelings to Buttercup. But the confidence wasn't there. There was no way Boomer would find it in himself to do such things. He groaned out loud and buried his head in his face.

"Remind me again why we even came" Boomer mumbled.

"To keep an eye on Butch, you know he gets himself into stupid situations. And because we literally had nothing better to do." Brick replied, eyeing his cup of punch as if it were the most interesting thing in the world. Boomer began to protest, but realized Brick was right. They had absolutely no plans, and no homework to do. But Boomer still would have preferred to stay home than watch his best friend steal the girl of his dreams from his grasp.

Over the loud pounding of music in the gym, the boys' super hearing caught the laughs of two specific girls. Both heads shot up at the sound to see Buttercup and Blossom laughing along with Mitch. Boomer found himself smiling at the sight of Buttercup's elated smile and the beautiful melody that escaped her lips. Then it occurred to him that she was giggling at something Mitch said. She was having a great time with _him_. _He_ was making her happy, making her smile and laugh. Maybe that was how it was supposed to be. Maybe Boomer was never meant to call Buttercup his. He was never meant to tell her how gorgeous she looked tonight. He took one last glance at Buttercup's joyous face before shoving his head back into his arms with a sigh of frustration.

Brick, however, never let his eyes leave Blossom. She looked amazing, but those thoughts were pushed away by the anger that filled Brick as he watched her. He wasn't even completely sure why he was so angry. He knew he was mad the other day, but he actually expected to be calmer by now. He supposed it was just the years of Blossom's constant commands and fights that made him heat up with rage whenever he looked at her. Whatever the case, he was still mad.

…

"Hey I'm gonna go get some more punch" Mitch announced before turning away. Once he was out of hearing range, Blossom smirked at her sister.

Buttercup glanced at Blossom and her smile instantly faltered. "What?" Blossom's grin only grew.

"You're having fun at this dance… with Mitch! I sense a new couple!" Blossom cooed.

"Oh come on Bloss! That sounds more like something Bubbles would say!"

"Well she isn't here yet, so someone has to acknowledge the obvious chemistry you two have." Buttercup rolled her eyes and glanced toward the punch bowl where Mitch was waiting. He noticed her staring, and gave a wink that caused Buttercup's cheeks to heat up.

"I'm having fun with Mitch and _you_." She argued. Blossom cocked an eyebrow doubtfully at her sister.

"You can't expect me to believe you're not having a pretty great time and there is _nothing _between you and Mitch."

Buttercup turned her head to hide her darkening cheeks. "Well… maybe a little… But this_ is_ kind of weird though, I mean, Mitch has been my best friend since kindergarten." Blossom giggled as she looked around the crowded gym.

"Better not let Butch hear you say that. He'll throw a tantrum!" she joked. Buttercup couldn't help but laugh along with her sister.

"Speaking of Butch, where is he with Bubbles?"

**_Tiny Hearts!_**

"My feet are starting to hurt… a lot" Bubbles complained quietly. She and Butch had been walking for what seemed like hours to Bubbles. Her high heels weren't making the trip any easier either. Butch began to panic. If he messed up this date, Bubbles may never want to even consider being his girlfriend.

He looked around franticly, desperate to find a way to save the date. He smiled when he spotted a small playground meant for the residents of the apartment building next to it. Butch took hold of her hand and urged her to follow him to one of the benches.

Bubbles sat down next to Butch, leaving a comfortable space between them, and relaxed. She hated to think that this was one of the worst dates she'd been on, because Butch seemed to really be trying. However, it was not making it in the "top five best dates" so far.

As if sensing her disappointment in the night so far, Butch spoke up. "I'm sorry, about all this. But I think I can make it up to you…" Bubbles spread her lips to reassure him that she was having a good time, even though it would have been a horrible lie. Before she took the breath to speak, Butch took her hand once again and led her toward the colorful merry-go-round a few feet away.

Butch gestured for her to step onto the wheel. She stood on the inside and wrapped her hands firmly around the rail with a big smile. Butch placed his foot on the other side of the rail and began to push the merry-go-round with his other foot. Before long, the wheel was spinning fast enough for Butch to put up both feet and face Bubbles.

She couldn't help but squeal with joy and giggle like a child. Hearing her over-joyed giggles, Butch allowed himself to laugh with her as they spun around in the night. Bubbles took a moment to catch her breath, and Butch's laugh filled her ears. It wasn't the typical teasing laugh Bubbles was so used to hearing from him. This laugh was genuine, it was real and she wanted to hear it more often.

It was as if she forgot they were spinning, because she only stared at him with a wide smile. He opened his eyes, revealing his deep green irises, and noticed Bubbles was no longer laughing uncontrollably. Instead, he found that she was staring into his eyes with that bright smile he loved so much. Her blue eyes seemed to have gotten brighter in the moon light, and Butch was mesmerized.

The wheel slowly came to a stop and Bubbles snapped out of her trance. Bubbles giggle once more as she stepped off and let dizziness take over. The pair's laughs echoed through the night as they clumsily made their way toward the swing set. Bubbles took her seat on a swing and stopped Butch before he could move behind her to push.

"Let's see who can go higher!" she suggested, pointing to the swing next to her.

"You can bet I'll win that challenge" Butch smirked, and he took the seat.

"We'll see about that" Bubbles sang. With that the two pushed off, getting higher and higher with each kick to the air. After a few swings, Butch proved to get higher than Bubbles as she came up about a foot lower than him.

"Ha! Told you I'd win!" Butch said. Bubbles only giggled, as if mocking him, and shot passed him as he slowed down. While in the air, she pushed herself off the rubber seat and soared as high as the five story building next to them.

Butch got off the swing and waited for Bubbles to float back down. When she landed, her grin seemed wider, if possible, and she held in a fit of laughter.

Butch eyed her, giving a playfully chiding look. "You cheated."

"No I didn't. I said let's see who could _go_ higher, not swing higher!" Bubbles corrected. She then broke into a fit of laughter as Butch glared playfully at her.

"Fine… let's go again. You're going down this time!"

**_More Tiny Hearts!_**

"I'm going to punch you in the fucking face if you don't get up, and go over there!" Brick growled at Boomer.

"Why do you always got straight to violence with me?!" Boomer argued. Brick shot him a warning glare, and Boomer sighed in defeat and stood from his seat at the table.

"What do I say?" Boomer asked and Brick rolled his eyes with a loud, over-exaggerated sigh.

"I don't know! She's all alone, her date is nowhere to be found, just talk to her like you used to!" Brick said, glaring into the crowd of teenagers. Boomer took a deep breath and made his way across the room to where Buttercup leaned against the wall.

"Oh hey Blue!" she greeted cheerfully. Boomer was love-struck by the way she grinned so brightly at him. It was rare to see such a wide smile on Buttercup's face, and Boomer wondered why she was so happy, especially when her date had been gone for about fifteen minutes.

Boomer pushed away the nauseous feeling in his stomach and spoke as if nothing was different between them. "Hey Butterfly. What are you doing over here all by yourself?"

Buttercup giggled lightly and cocked an eyebrow at him. "Butterfly?"

"Yeah, why not? My new nickname for you. Now where's Noodle Arms?" Boomer said, making Buttercup laugh out loud. There's that laugh Boomer loved so much.

"He said he was going to the bathroom" she replied. Boomer chuckled to himself as he looked around the gym.

"It should not take a teenage boy almost twenty minutes to pee. Maybe we should look for him, you know, it's always the super hero's partner that the villains go for." He said, walking toward the double doors.

Buttercup followed him and scoffed at the assumption. "He's not my boyfriend! This is just a one-time thing, he's just my date. And anyway, I don't think any villain would kidnap him. He'd be a really annoying captive, so annoying they would just toss him back onto the streets!" Boomer mentally bounced with happiness.

Once they exited the gym into the hallway, Buttercup spotted a baseball lying against the wall. It must have rolled out of the gym while students set up for the dance. She picked up the small white ball with a mischievous grin spreading across her face. Boomer noticed the suspicious smile that graced her face and furrowed a brow at her.

"I have a feeling the next words that come out of your mouth will get me in trouble" he said cautiously. Buttercup laughed and tossed the ball into the air and catching it again.

"Oh come on Blue, how many chances will we ever have to play catch in the school hallway?" Boomer chuckled, jogging down the hall toward the corner. He readied himself for Buttercup's throw, but blond hair took his attention to the end of the other hallway. Buttercup threw the baseball with full force, and Boomer was too distracted to see the ball coming straight for him.

Boomer groaned quietly in pain when the ball smashed into the side of his head, almost causing him to lose balance. Buttercup winced and quickly made her way to his side.

"Sorry Blue. You oka-"

"Yeah yeah, I'm fine! Uh- come on let's get back to the gym." Boomer tried to pull Buttercup back down the hall while holding his aching head. Buttercup yanked her arm back once she saw what Boomer had seen.

Some blond girl, that wasn't Bubbles, was nose to nose with Mitch as they giggled like a love-struck high school couple. Boomer glanced at Buttercup, seeing her face redden with rage. He moved to comfort her, but she jerked away and eyed the baseball that lay close to Boomer. In a flash the baseball was flying through the air at full speed, and hit the wall right next to Mitch's head.

Mitch shot up from the blond girl with wide eyes and saw the ball rolling down the hall aimlessly. He turned his head to see a hole in the wall almost completely through to the next room.

"Oh, hello asshole!" Buttercup hissed, if looks could kill, Mitch would be beyond dead at the moment. Chestnut eyes met with his in a hateful glare, and Mitch suddenly felt a wave of pain run though his cheek before the blond stomped off. Mitch glanced back up to Buttercup and shook slightly when he noticed she was now only a few feet away from him.

"L-look B-"

"Just shut up!" Buttercup cut clean through Mitch's pathetic stuttering and folded her arms in annoyance. It was then that she realized what exactly it was that kept her alert whenever Mitch tried to make a romantic advance. "Listen Mitch, I didn't want to come to this stupid dance in the first place, let alone as your date and I honestly couldn't care less about who you want to be with. So if you just swear that you won't _ever_ try to include me in these little games you're starting to play, we won't have a problem, got it?"

Mitch nodded, looked ashamed for trying to mess with his best friend's heart, and opened his arms for a friendly hug. "You have a deal, and I'm sorry. Now how about a hug for your best friend?" Buttercup rolled her eyes good-heartedly and walked forward to embrace Mitch. For the first two seconds, the hug was meaningful and friendly, but Mitch didn't expect to suddenly feel the fabric tighten around his midsection. Mitch cried out in pain as Buttercup hooked Mitch's underwear around a screw of a locker, not high enough so he was dangling by his underwear, but just enough to make him have to struggle for about five minutes to get down.

"You didn't think you'd completely get away with that did you?" Buttercup smirked as she admired her work.  
Mitch squirmed around letting out small cries of pain as Buttercup turned on her heel and walked down the hall toward the gym. Boomer stifled a laugh as Mitch called out for Buttercup to come back and get him down.

Boomer rushed to Buttercup's pace and placed a hand on her shoulder, forcing her to stop in her tracks.

"I'm not heart broken or anything! I'm not even mad at him!" she burst desperately. Boomer furrowed his brows at her and made her face him completely.

"Buttercup, you don't always have to be so strong" he said soothingly, trying to see any sign of sadness in her eyes, but she avoided his gaze. "It's okay to feel upset or mad. What he did was wrong, and I'm surprised you let him off so easy."

Buttercup refused to meet Boomer's eyes. "It's not like I actually felt anything for him, it's just…"Boomer tightened his grip on her shoulder, urging her to continue. "I-I think part of me was… excited, that I was actually going on a date. Sometimes I just feel like… I'm not good enough or something. Like there must be something wrong with me that makes guys not want to be with me like that…"

She was crazy. Boomer officially believed that Buttercup was completely insane. She didn't know how many guys silently crushed on her. It occurred to him that Buttercup's "warning glares" weren't actually supposed to be intimidating. She must not have even realized that her expressions virtually scared every guy in school. She didn't see how many guys tripped or walked right into walls at the very sight of her like Boomer had. Not to mention, he was one of those guys. Boomer pulled her face up by the chin, forcing her to look him in the eyes.

"You have no idea how wrong you are. There are so many guys in this school who would kill to have you on their arm. Don't ever think that, because they are the ones who should be making sure _they_ are good enough for _you._" Boomer could swear he caught the slightest bit of pink in Buttercup's cheeks as she managed a small smile.

"Don't ever tell anyone about this or you'll pay the consequences" Buttercup warned, but the friendliness never left her voice.

"You have my word, Butterfly" Boomer said, letting go of her shoulders. Buttercup rolled her eyes and started back to the double doors.

Boomer had a sudden thought, and acted upon it just like Butch told him to do, and rushed in front of her, arms out stretched to block her path. "Wait, wait! Since now neither of us have a reason to stay here, what do you saw we go have some real fun? Like the arcade?"

"You mean the arcade in the mall? Isn't that mall closed now?" Buttercup asked, looking at her cell phone and confirming it was almost seven at night.

"Well yeah, but the movie theater and arcade stay open until midnight on days they know students have off" Boomer began to walk toward the school's main doors.

"How come Butch has never stayed until then, that guy could play skee-ball for hours!"

"Because Butch isn't as awesome as me!" Boomer shouted proudly into the hall, causing an echo and Buttercup to giggle.

**_Tiny hearts..._**

The loud music blaring throughout the gym only irritated Brick further. Sure, he could just drive himself home, but Butch was nowhere to be found and he wasn't about to leave his little brother alone at the dance. Who knows what kind of stupid situation Boomer could get himself into if Brick left?

The deafening music and annoying girls trying to get him to dance with them weren't even Brick's worst issues with being there. No matter how hard he tried, Blossom had always found her way into his view. It irritated him to no end and he couldn't help the harsh glare that was forever plastered to his face.

Although she hadn't meant to, when Blossom glanced up from shared laughs with her friends, she caught Brick's harsh stare. Her innocent pink eyes held Brick's gaze and her cheerful smile faded, seeing how fiercely his radiant red eyes held so much fury and hatred.

For a moment, Brick seemed mesmerized by the innocence Blossom's eyes held. He felt his anger lessen, but his glare refused to let up. Droplets of liquid began to mask the soft pink of her eyes. She held his gaze for a moment longer before blinking, causing the tears to race down her cheeks.

Suddenly, Blossom's teary eyes were all Brick could see. Every moment that he had made Blossom shed a single tear filled Brick's mind like a clip show. The moment he stupidly broke off their friendship, and the pained sound of Blossom's sobbing when he found her on the roof, it all fogged up his vision, like he wasn't even in the gym anymore.

Next thing Brick knew, the crowds of people reappeared, still dancing like there was no tomorrow. Brick noticed Blossom was no longer standing with her small group of giggling friends. He franticly searched the room, all anger gone, until he spotted long red hair rushing out of the double doors. Brick's heart sank; it felt as if a hundred pound weight was dangling from his heart by a single thread.

A new feeling seemed to present itself. And Brick didn't like it one bit. A lump formed in his throat, his chest felt heavy, and he felt a strong urge to take off running after Blossom. And right then, it was like a light bulb suddenly flicked on as if it had been off for centuries. The horrible feeling that clouded Brick's mind was complete and utter guilt. Under that, was the love he had kept hidden, even from himself, for all these years.

He loved Blossom.

It seemed wrong and twisted, but it all made sense to Brick. He couldn't lose her like that; he had a feeling that if she walked away, their friendship would fade as well. So, Brick ended it on his terms, hoping it wouldn't affect him as much knowing it was what he wanted.

But that was a stupid decision. Brick yelled, he made her cry; he took their friendship and shattered it to bits. All because he didn't want to feel the pain of losing Blossom, but instead, she felt the pain. Even after she gave him all of her trust, after she helped him start a normal and happy life; he broke her heart.

But now it was clear. He was wrong. He was wrong and he loved Blossom more than anything else in the world, even more than his hat. It was also clear that he messed up and lost the girl of his dreams.

But Brick knew better than to stop chasing his dreams.

* * *

_**Me: THERE! IT'S DONE! yesh that was long! and sorry, stupid site takes away my three tiny powerpuff hearts! so whenever you see a break in my stories, just know that somewhere far away, there are three tiny black powerpuff hearts in place of it on the original document.**_

_**Blossom: Hope you enjoyed! remember to re- *crash***_

_**Blues: *walk through a hole in the wall with dirt all over them* we're here!**_

_**Me:... *turns to Reds*... what did you do?!**_

_**Brick: we wanted to be included... so Butch took care of things...**_

_**Me:... *throws papers into the air* I can't do this anymore! *walks away dramatically, leaves room completely***_

_**Bubbles and Boomer: butchercup says thank you to all the wonderful readers and reviewers out there! she wouldn't be here if it weren't for you guys!**_

_**Reds: *shoves Blues out of the way* BYE PEOPLE OF THE WORLD!**_

_**XOXO **_


	10. LoveLikeWar

_**Hey my lovely readers! I have to thank all you great people out there for sticking with me through out this story! thank you so much, it means so much to know my writing is acceptable!**_

_**Now... bad news... I wasn't able to finish the next chapter :( so so sorry! I really hate to break my promise, but I'd rather postpone the update than update today and have it be really crappy. **_

_**BUT! **__**I Will not leave you with nothing this Friday! my best friend wrote a poem to go along with my story because she's awesome like that! here it is!**_

* * *

I know it hurts but don't cry...

Those tears shouldn't swell, as they do in your lovely eyes

Your something special, something loved

Heaven smiles down on your beauty, love

I know your tired and beat, but you better get up

This battle stinks and life is ruthless, no one said

It'll be easy, but I know your tough

Wipe off that sorrow and wear determination

No one suceeds the first time, You better know

Don't let your light burn out, dont extingush your glow

You poured out your feelings, dig deeper for your heart

They'll challenge you, give in and they'll tear you apart

Loving hurts, hell it even kills

It's an uphill battle defined by will

They told you to quit while you still had a chance

They tried to help you off the ground

You pushed them away and shouted NEVER

**Love is like a war, but a war worth fighting forever**

**_~oddsoul_**

* * *

_**well there it is! she worked hard on it and I wuv her sooo much for it! I an almost promise the update will be before this weekend is over kay?!**_

_**again, sorry about the no update! but I hope you liked the poem. tell me what you thought because she will probably be posting more poems on my account so look out!**_

_**XOXO**_


	11. Steady Part 2- Harmonized

_**OKAY OKAY OKAY! I won't say much because I'm so happy I finished this! thanks so much for being patient and I again im sorry for not updating properly yesterday. **_

_**and please, if I ever happen to mention posting a story before I'm completely done with it... SLAP THE CRAP OUTTA ME! I will give you my address, just slap me! I will NEVER do this again! wow I really regret that... "oh, I'm just going to post the first chapter! i'll have the whole story done WAY before I even post chapter 3..."... WHAT THE heck was I thinking!**_

_**anyway, finally done.. hope you like! Btw, it's over 6,000 words! I'm so proud!**_

* * *

"Pineapples, because they're sweet and the name is fun to say!" Bubbles giggled as she hung up-side-down on the money bars with Butch. They had been hanging for at least ten minutes, laughing together and sharing little details about themselves they didn't know, like favorite fruits.

Butch chuckled along with her until her laughter died down enough for him to give an answer. "Pomegranate! Because they're fun to eat and I can spit the seeds at Boomer when he annoys me!" This made Bubbles giggle even harder, her entire face turning red both from hanging up-side-down and laughing so hard. Butch thought she would slip right off the bars and fall face-first into the sand beneath them. Bubbles eventually calmed down long enough to ask the next question.

"O-Okay… Um, favorite thing to do? Mine would be having fun with my sisters and friends! What about you?"

Butch smiled so genuinely, Bubbles thought she could stare at it for hours. Typically, Butch's smiles were fake and mocking, or a mischievous smirk. But when he was around Bubbles, he gave her a grin that was full of complete bliss and made her heart practically melt. He stared into her eyes for a moment, captivating her with his content smile and relaxed forest green eyes. "Looking into your beautiful one-of-a-kind, blue eyes."

Bubbles' heart skipped a beat. Butch's voice was so sweet, so calm, and it sounded nothing like when he spoke compliments to other girls. They're eyes locked in a gaze that seemed to last forever.

_Snap._

By instinct, being a super hero, Butch broke his gaze with Bubbles to find the source of noise. He turned his head to see a small white rabbit staring at Butch with radiant red eyes. Bubbles had spotted the rabbit as well and smiled warmly, but was caught off guard when Butch let out a deafening shriek. Butch clumsily unwrapped his legs from the bars, falling into the sand, and in a streak of dark green, he was on the other side of the park.

Bubbles let herself off the money-bars, trying to suppress her giggles from Butch's girlish screech, and picked up the bunny in her hands.

"Butch, what's the matter? It's just a cute little bunny" she asked, an amused smile gracing her features. Butch trembled slightly from where he stood and glared at the small creature in Bubbles' hands.

"More like a furry ball of pure evil! That thing attacked my face at my most vulnerable state! And the only reason no one noticed is because the evidence scratches it left healed before Monday!"

Bubbles giggled once again, beginning to walk toward Butch. "You know, you shouldn't base your feelings about all rabbits because of the appearance and actions of one." She was directly in front of Butch, the bunny still in hand. "You never know," Bubbles held the rabbit out for Butch. He hesitantly held his hands up, allowed Bubbles to place the soft rabbit in his hands. "It may actually be really sweet and caring, unlike some others." Butch brought the bunny closer to his chest and it snuggled into his vest.

Bubbles captured the moment. It was heart-warming to see Butch in such a sensitive state. He had just let her see a side of him that not many people knew about; a caring and lovable side. She used to think Butch was just another guy that would kick her heart around like it was the ball in a game of soccer. She had too many experiences with guys like that, that she didn't see the honesty that had been in Butch's heart the entire time.

The bunny moved to jump out of Butch's hands, so he slowly set it down in the grass. Before scampering off, it wiggled its pink nose cutely at Butch, and then at Bubbles, as if saying goodbye.

"I'm sorry." Butch glanced up at Bubbles, who suddenly found the blades of grass very interesting. He furrowed a brow at her.

"For what?"

"For never giving you a chance. It's just like you and that bunny. I based feelings about you on my past experience with guys I thought you were like. I never took the time to realize how good-natured you could be. So, I'm sorry." Bubbles hung her head. Butch stepped closer and lifted her head up by the chin.

"That's just something we have in common then. But we just helped each other learn a lesson, so now I have a new furry friend and you got to see another side of me" he said. Bubbles let her eyes meet Butch's again and smiled brightly.

"Not only that, I think this also helped me find the guy of my dreams…" Before Butch could process what she said, Bubbles leapt up, wrapping her arms around his neck in a passionate kiss. Butch wasted no time in wrapping his arms around her waist, hugging her tightly and lifting her just inches from the ground.

They pulled away and shared yet another long gaze into each other's eyes. Bubbles let out a small giggle and buried her head into the crook of Butch's neck. He tightened his hold, as if afraid she'd disappear, and gently rested the side of his head on hers. Butch finally had his bright ray of sunshine.

A drop of water hit Butch's forehead, and he looked up at the cloudy sky. Slowly, more drops of rain began to trickle down around them. The pair broke apart and stared up at the clouds, but held hands tightly. Before they knew it, the clouds unleashed larger drops much quicker until it was a full-blown rainstorm.

"Oh, how cliché!" Butch complained to no one in particular. Bubbles laughed aloud and pulled Butch by the wrist to find somewhere dry. They ran to the sidewalk and glanced around for anything to keep them dry until the rain stopped. Bubbles' eyes widened when she spotted a small building with an "open" sign in the window. She turned back to Butch with an enormous smile.

"I'll take you up on that ice cream date now!"

* * *

"Just admit it Blue!"

"Absolutely not!" Boomer smirked at Buttercup over the air-hockey table.

"Come on! Stop being a sore loser! It was seven to three; you suck at this game!" Buttercup gestured to the digital score board that hung over the table.

"I'm not a sore loser, Butterfly. I'm simply stating the fact that that was a lucky win." Boomer's cocky smile never left his face as he challenged her.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Well then, what do you say to one more round?" Buttercup held up three arcade tokens and cocked an eyebrow up.

"Bring it on Powderpuff." Boomer teased. Buttercup glared, but couldn't resist the smile that tugged at her lips when he acted "tough". She inserted the three tokens and the score board reset itself.

…

"I swear you cheated" Buttercup curled her lower lip in a pout. Boomer chuckled at the slight innocence that graced her features when she did that.

"Oh, stop being a sore loser Butterfly!" he said, mocking her earlier words. Buttercup rolled her eyes good-heartedly and lightly pushed Boomer to the side.

"And besides, there is no way I could have cheated. We played for a full twenty minutes! You may have lost, but you don't go down easy… I like that."

Before Buttercup could even register what he had said, Boomer had already walked off. He stepped onto the Dance Dance Revolution platform and pressed a random button with a large grin spread across his face. He glanced back over to where he left Buttercup and waved her over.

"Come on Butterfly, I bet the school's D.J. isn't playing music as awesome as this machine!" Boomer slid two tokens into both player slots and pressed start. Buttercup chuckled to herself and joined Boomer on the platform.

Boomer mindlessly hit buttons out of excitement to get started and the music from Toxic by Brittney Spears began to play. Buttercup laughed as Boomer stood in a ready position, as if he was preparing for battle.

"This is your idea of awesome music?" she cocked an eyebrow at him.

"Oh come on, it's a remix!" he replied cheerfully, his eyes fixed on the brightly colored screen. Buttercup returned her attention to the screen, and before she could even blink, multiple arrows shot up from the bottom of the screen. Buttercup moved her feet as fast as she could without tripping over herself, but could barely match up a single arrow. She glanced at the blond beside her and noticed he wasn't having any more luck. Boomer had to have been at least ten beats behind, and he seemed to give up within twenty seconds into the song.

"You put it on expert?!" Buttercup lightly punched Boomer in the arm when she took another look at the screen.

"Huh, I guess I did!" he exclaimed. Boomer took Buttercup's hands in his and danced wildly. Buttercup laughed out loud as Boomer spun her around and they bounced aimlessly on the platform. The goal to stomp on the correct arrows was long forgotten and instead they made a sad attempt at a fast paced waltz.

Boomer's heart raced at the sound of Buttercup's enchanting cries of delight. The song ended abruptly and the machine announced their failure. The pair held their stomachs out of laughter at the sight of their horrible scores.

"Wow we suck!" Boomer said in between chuckles.

Buttercup held her eyes closed from laughing so hard, as she began to walk off the small platform. "Yeah, but I sucked slightly less than yo- Whoa!"

Buttercup misjudged the height of the platform and one foot stumbled off the edge. Boomer was quick to wrap his arms around her waist and cut her slip short. He froze with Buttercup in his arms as if he was in the middle of dipping her during a slow dance.

Buttercup didn't move a muscle either. Her breath got caught in her throat as her eyes met with the striking blue ones just inches from her face. His hold on her was firm; it was strong and protective. She could barely make out an expression of fear behind Boomer's dazzling navy eyes; as if he was really afraid for her safety.

_Did she really mean that much to him?_

The most that could have happened was that Buttercup twists her ankle, maybe. Her heart picked up its pace by a billion times under Boomer's gaze. He was afraid, yet confident. By the feeling of his arms wrapped securely around her, Buttercup sensed his strength and power. But behind that, was the caring and watchful side of Boomer everyone was well aware of.

Boomer tried his hardest to gather up every ounce of courage he had. Buttercup's eyes went from shocked and caught off guard to calm and mesmerized within seconds.

_"Just do it!" _His subconscious told him.

"_You're losing your chance with every second that passes by!_"

"_She's going to stand up by herself eventually!_"

No matter what his mind told him, Boomer couldn't find the power to move an inch. He just stood there, his hands tightly gripping Buttercup inches from him and his eyes never leaving her sweet, pale green eyes. The only thing that cut the gaze short for a hundredth of a second was when Buttercup finally blinked. Her gaze seemed to harden, as if searching for any sign in Boomer's eyes.

"…What are you thinking about Blue?" she finally asked once she gave up trying to figure it out herself. Boomer blinked, and briefly glanced at her lips directly in front of him. Luckily, he was able to sum up enough courage to speak.

"Something insane…" he spoke softly. Buttercup allowed a meek grin to grace her face, along with a slight pink hue.

"…Well, Butch _is _my counterpart, so I guess it's safe to say I'm insane too. I'm up for whatever bizarre idea you had going through that cute head of yours." Buttercup's eyes had softened and Boomer automatically noticed the look of bliss on her face.

Boomer was sure Buttercup could hear his heart beating a zillion times faster. He was moments from releasing his hold and running for his life, but he couldn't do that. He stared into the eyes of the girl of his dreams and reality. Buttercup was gorgeous. Everything about her was amazing. She could, and has, taken down monsters and villains and still look amazing. She effortlessly, and unknowingly, stole his heart and countless other guys in school. He couldn't let her slip through his fingers. No, not again.

Not ever again.

Boomer pulled Buttercup closer to him. In the slow motion of it, he could feel Buttercup slowly wrapping her arms around his neck as his lips finally met hers. Boomer's hold got tighter, much more secure as if he was afraid she would vanish and he would realize it was all just a dream. Before Boomer knew it, he pulled away and was looking into her eyes again.

The kiss was short, but Buttercup definitely felt something. Boomer had placed such a gentle and loving kiss on her lips, but she still felt that electrifying spark she had always wondered about. The kiss was nothing like the one she'd shared with Mitch.

Boomer lifted Buttercup back on her own two feet, but never took his arms off her waist. Buttercup lowered her hands to his chest, where she could feel his heart racing. She smiled, hoping to calm his nerves.

"Buttercup?" Buttercup met Boomer's gaze once again. He took a deep breath and relaxed. "_Just go with your first thought…_" Boomer replayed his brother's words once again.

"I- I like you, a lot… and you know what, to be honest I'll even go as far to say I love you. You have no clue how much it hurts to think that what I'm saying could mess things up, but it hurts even more holding in this feeling I've had. Buttercup, I'm crazy about you. And I swear I fall for you harder every single day… I just hope tha-"

Buttercup was smart enough to realize that he doubted himself. She placed a hand over his mouth to silence him. "How long have you felt this was Boomer?" she asked, suddenly very curious.

"… A while" he answered, his cheeks getting redder and redder by the second. Buttercup rested her head on Boomer's shoulder and whispered.

"Well… I think I'm starting to fall for you too…"

* * *

The rain dulled the once bright color of Blossom's dress. The pressure of the water straightened out the waves that Bubbles had worked so hard to get perfect. Blossom trudged along the sidewalk through downtown, on her way home. She could have taken the car, but that would have meant cutting whatever fun Buttercup was having short. Blossom didn't want to ruin her sister's fun just because she was a horrible friend to Brick.

Normally Blossom could easily shake off a nasty glare from an enemy, but this specific scowl stung her like crazy. And she knew exactly why. Not only was Brick not supposed to be her enemy anymore, but after his harsh stare and words, she realized the real reason why it hurt so much to lose him.

Blossom was in love with Brick.

She never noticed the feelings because they were such great friends. But after feeling the pain of losing him, she was forced to realize how she truly felt, and that just added more to her pain.

For once, Blossom felt hopeless. She felt like, if she had the chance to apologize, she wouldn't be able to find the words. Not to mention the fact that she was almost positive Brick wouldn't give her the chance anytime soon.

She came to a halt at a stop light and patiently waited for the light to turn green. As Blossom waited, she heard a small amount of metal hitting concrete. She looked at her wrist and noticed that her silver charm bracelet had slipped off. She knelt down to the ground and when she couldn't find it on the sidewalk; she shoved her hand into the small puddle of water that collected against the sidewalk.

With no luck, Blossom sighed as she stared at her reflection in the puddle. As the ripples she had created settled down, she spotted a figure in red standing directly behind her. Blossom gasped softly.

"Brick?"

Blossom quickly stood up and turned to face him. She realized that he was holding a black umbrella over her, but held a blank expression on his face. The look made Blossom want to burst into rambles of apologies and pleas for his friendship back. But, just as she expected, when she tried to speak her voice wouldn't let out a single syllable.

"B-Br… I-I'm s-s-" Blossom stuttered, unable to form a worth apology. Just as she was about to attempt to speak again, Blossom was surprised to suddenly feel Brick's strong arm pull her into his chest and hug her tightly. She didn't have to give it much thought before she wrapped her arms around his waist.

Brick rested his chin on the top of her head and just stayed that way for what seemed like hours before he finally spoke so quietly, that even with super hearing Blossom could just barely catch it. "I'm sorry Blossom."

She raised her eyes as if trying to look at Brick, and he seemed to tighten his hold on her. "I'm sorry Blossom." Brick repeated sorrow clear in his voice. "I'm sorry for this entire thing. This fight, the nasty looks I've been giving you, I'm sorry for all of it."

Blossom pulled out of his iron grasp to look him in the eyes. Desperation. That is what she saw deep behind those tough red eyes of his. It was like he was missing something, something important. Blossom parted her lips to tell Brick not to apologize. That she was the one who should have been apologizing, but Brick gently placed his hand over her mouth and shook his head as if to say he wasn't finished.

"I thought that by breaking our friendship on my terms, I wouldn't be as hurt. But, all that did was hurt you and drive me beyond insanity. I realized I was just as hurt as you. When I saw you leaving that dance, I saw the feeling I was trying to ignore this whole time with pointless anger. I was stupid Bloss, and I'm sorry… I'm so sorry." Brick never let go of Blossom's gaze, and when she furrowed her eyebrows at him, his heart dropped with despair.

"Brick, I'm the one that should be apologizing. This whole situation made me realize that I've always been pretty uptight and bossy. And I never really give you the chance to show that you can lead our group too. You lead your brothers just fine without me, and all I did was try to claim the title as leader to myself…"

Brick allowed a small smile on his face. Blossom really was amazing to him; she was able to accept her own mistakes. That was just another thing they had in common (although it took Brick a little longer to realize it), and another reason he loved her.

"Well it looks like we both have some self-issues that need to be addresses…" he said. Blossom returned his cheeky grin.

"But we can fix them in time… together, friends?" Blossom questioned.

"The best" Brick chuckled as he looked at their surroundings. They still stood rather close to the edge of the sidewalk, and Brick took a few steps back with Blossom doing the same. He then held up a thin silver chain with three small charms attached to it. Blossom's eyes lit up with joy as she reached for the bracelet.

"My charm bracelet! I thought I lost in the puddle!" she exclaimed as Brick clasped the chain securely around her wrist.

"Which reminds me. What are you doing, walking home alone in the rain?"

Blossom giggled lightly and briefly wondered why she didn't ask anyone for an umbrella at least. "I guess I just felt like being dramatic" she joked.

"…Well then it's my turn to be dramatic." Before Blossom could ask what he meant, Brick tossed his umbrella over his shoulder dramatically (as promised), and took hold of Blossom's hand. Brick held one of her small hands in his, his other firmly on Blossom's back, and leaned downward to dip her. Blossom held onto his hand for dear life, afraid she was going to fall right on her back, but Brick broke all nervousness when he gently placed his lips on hers.

Blossom felt her heart skip a beat as the kiss seemed to last a thousand times longer than it really was. Brick slowly brought Blossom back up, still kissing her, and let go of her hand to rest it with the other on her back.

A smile was able to find its way on Blossom's face despite the kiss. She felt warm and over-joyed to have Brick back, and the kiss was just icing on the cake.

* * *

"-I don't know how Butch got that thing, but Bubbles was not letting him get away with stealing her favorite stuffed animal." Boomer said between laughs. Buttercup was sitting across from him at their table in the food section, laughing hysterically.

"Bubbles can get really crazy if you mess with her, even I get scared of her" Buttercup managed to say despite her laughter. Boomer couldn't be happier at that moment. Just seeing Buttercup's face light up and hearing her harmonious laugh, sent his heart miles away.

As Boomer watched her laughs die down, he scooted his chair so he was right next to Buttercup. Once she calmed down, she met Boomer's gaze and allowed her lips to form her beautiful smile. Boomer examined her face, finding not a single reason a guy wouldn't like her, and noticed a small cluster of black bangs that refused to stay in place. He remembered how Buttercup had been hopelessly trying to keep the few strands of hair out of the way all night.

He reached up and gently tucked the strands of hair behind Buttercup's ear, then lightly caressed her cheek. Boomer smiled when he saw a light blush spread on her face. He moved his hand under Buttercup's chin and began to pull her face close, when the strands of hair fell back in her face, right in the middle. Boomer glared at her bangs and pushed them back again, only to have then return to the center of her head. This continued a couple more times until Buttercup finally spoke up.

"What are you doing?" she asked, giggling slightly.

"Trying to be romantic…" he replied, still focused on her bangs. Buttercup rolled her eyes good-heartedly and leaned forward in a flash. As fast as she pressed her lips to his, she pulled away with a huge smile.

"Is that romantic enough for you?" Buttercup chuckled at the stunned expression Boomer gave her. Boomer smiled and shook his head. "I could stand a bit more."

Buttercup leaned forward once again, but this time Boomer was ready and leaned as well. Their lips met in a much longer, more passionate kiss than either of the earlier ones. When they broke apart, Buttercup caught sight of the clock on the wall.

"Shit! I should be getting home soon, come on" she said, standing from her seat. Boomer stood up and the pair began their walk to the girls' house. Once outside where the rain was slowly dying down, Buttercup reached into her small purse for her phone. Instead of her cell phone, Buttercup pulled out a set of keys and gasped. Boomer glanced at her with concern.

"… Blossom gave me the keys to the Professor's car!" she exclaimed. She stared at the keys, wondering what she should do, and simply stuffed them back into her purse and continued to walk. "Oh well, I'm sure one of her friends will give her a ride."

Boomer chuckled, as he walked by her side, reluctant to reach out and hold her hand. After a few minutes of silence, Buttercup glanced up at him with a small grin and deep in place.

"So… I'm pretty sure we haven't made it official yet, so… do you wanna be my boyfriend?" she asked sheepishly. Boomer felt his heart skip a beat for about the hundredth time that night and returned her smile.

"Aw, Butterfly! You stole my job. I even had this whole huge set up planned out!" he joked.

"With green balloons and a giant chocolate cake?!" Buttercup played along.

Boomer nodded his head. "And I was planning on popping out of said giant cake with flowers and a banner asking you to be my girlfriend!" he said enthusiastically. The two laughed as they walked down the wet sidewalk.

Boomer took a moment to notice how different Buttercup really was. She wasn't like most girls, who would have worn heels to the dance. From her style to her attitude, Buttercup was not like any other girl he'd met.

_ "She is definitely one-of-a-kind" he thought_

"Nothing would make me happier… " Boomer said, properly answering her question. When he looked at her, he saw her smile grow wider than he'd ever seen. Buttercup lifted her arm and took Boomer's hand in hers as they walked.

_"But, she's my one-of-a-kind butterfly…"_

* * *

Bubbles giggled uncontrollably as Butch put the finishing touches on his poorly made mint chocolate chip ice cream snow-man. He set two gummy bears on the top of the "head", and used chocolate candies as the buttons and eyes.

"Top that work of art Sunshine" he challenged. Bubbles scoffed and sat back, allowing Butch to see what she had done with her birthday cake ice cream. His jaw practically hit the table what he laid eyes on the miniature model of the girls' house. The only thing that was missing was the three round windows that lead to the girls' bedroom, otherwise it was perfect. Bubbles had broken up pieces of her cone and used the ice cream as glue.

"How did you make that with one little cone?!" He asked, astonished.

"An artist never reveals her secrets!" Bubbles answered, throwing her arms in the air for effect. Butch raised an eyebrow at her before bursting into laughter.

"That's a magician!"

"Same thing!"

"Not even close."

Bubbles laughed along with Butch as their works of art began to melt into creamy messes. She caught sight of the grumpy employee glaring their way, probably annoyed that they won't eat their desserts and leave since they were the only two in the parlor. Bubbles held back a giggle at the man's irritated expression, and stared at her miniature house.

"What's with you?" Butch asked when he noticed she was no longer laughing about their childish antics.

"We… are _so_ gonna get kicked out! He hates us!" she whispered, still trying to contain her laughter. Butch smirked as he turned his head slightly to look at the man. He chuckled to himself.

"Especially considering we did walk in here soaking wet!" he added.

Bubbles decided that it would be best if they ate their ice cream and left quickly before they annoyed the employee even more. "I'm going to get us some spoons okay?" she said, standing from the booth. As Bubbles slid out of the seat, her arm brushed ever so slightly against the tray that their ice cream sat on. Before either could realize what was happening the tray, along with their frozen works of art, slid off the table and onto the newly cleaned marble floor.

Butch stood up and was at Bubbles' side in an instant once he saw the furious stare he was giving Bubbles. All she could do was stare wide-eyed at the mix of colors splattered all over the floor. The grumpy employee trudged towards the couple with a bucket and mop. Bubbles looked guiltily up at the man.

"I'm so sorry sir! I'll help you cle-"

"Just… leave… please…" the man growled, making Bubbles quiver with more guilt. Butch placed his arm around Bubbles' shoulder and hastily lead her out of the parlor before the man exploded with rage.

Once outside, the pair burst into hysterical fits of laughter. They must have laughed for four whole blocks before they began to calm down.

"…I… feel so bad!" Bubbles breathed between chuckles.

"Hey. Don't feel bad Sunshine. You're laughing so you must know it was pretty funny!" he said. She nodded, but anyone could tell she felt a bit of shame.

"You know it was an accident, so just laugh about it and don't beat yourself up!" Bubbles let out a loud giggle and threw her arms around Butch's neck, hugging him tightly.

No one really knew about the sweet and caring side of Butch that hid behind the sarcastic player. At school he put up a show, making people think he didn't have a care in the world. But Bubbles was well aware of the kind of person Butch really was. He was lovable and completely amazing in her eyes.

* * *

As the icy cold droplets of rain became scarce, Blossom and Brick still held onto each other. Blossom had her head rested his shoulder, and her arms wrapped tightly around his neck. Brick embrace Blossom as close as he could with his hands firmly around her waist. The pair slowly swayed side to side in a small circle to the soft music coming from Brick's smartphone.

Blossom couldn't help but feel so right in his arms, so protected. And yeah, it was corny to be slow dancing in the light drizzle of rain, but they were supposed to be at a dance, so might as well. Suddenly, multiple chimes and alarms went off from the little antique clock shop they near. The redheads looked up from their comfortable stance at the many clocks that signaled a new hour.

"I should be getting home, before the Professor has a panic attack" Blossom said. She untangled her arms from around Brick's neck and immediately felt cold. Brick chuckled as he took out his phone to turn the music off.

"Well then lets fly…" Brick began to take off when Blossom cleared her throat rather loudly. He looked back at her with a raised eyebrow. "What?"

"I can't fly in a dress!" she gestured to the still soaking dress.

"Why not? You flew all around town in a dress when you were five" Brick argued, floating back to the ground.

"…But we wore tights under our dresses!" Blossom gripped the rim of her pink dress, "Do you see any tights right now?"

Brick rolled his eyes playfully and stepped closer toward her. "Fine, then let me carry you so we can at least get there faster than walking." He outstretched his arms, waiting for Blossom to nod or even jump right into his arms. When she didn't, Brick sighed, "I promise I'll fly slowly so you don't mess up your hair!" he mocked.

Blossom scoffed, but placed an arm around his neck, "It's too late to save my hair, the rain already ruined it." Brick scooped Blossom up in his arms in bridal style and slowly flew above the city and toward the girls' house.

They soared through the now cloudless night sky, the breeze pushing the hair out of Blossom's face. She clung tightly to Brick, despite his slow speed, and rested her head on his shoulder. And even though she was in nothing but a small dress, Blossom was warm in Brick's hold.

"You know, I don't believe I ever thanked you Bloss." Brick spoke up. Blossom lifted her head to look him in the eyes, confusion clear on her face.

"For what?"

Brick smiled before he answered. "You practically risked this city's trust in you and your sisters for my brothers and I to live the life you have. You enforced justice so much that you gave it to three eight-year-olds, who could very well have been traitors. That's something I can never thank you enough for Blossom."

"Well, it's easy to risk so much for someone you love…" Blossom's cheeks took on a shade of red that matched Brick's tie.

"I love you too Blossom." Brick's hold on her seemed to tighten, as if he was hugging her. Blossom wrapped her other arm around Brick to return the embrace. They glided through the sky just like that all the way to the house.

When they landed Brick gently set Blossom on her feet in front of the door. She rummaged through her small red purse for her house key and began to unlock the door. Before opening the door, she glanced back at Brick, then at the cold night sky.

"Why don't you come inside for a while? We can get some hot chocolate to warm up." She offered. Brick nodded and Blossom opened the door for them. He stepped inside and, after closing the door behind him, was shocked at what he saw.

Bubbles and Butch were seated on the couch, hand in hand, and watching T.V. Upon hearing the door shut, Bubbles perked up and spotted her sister and boyfriend's brother staring in awe to the sight before them.

"Little Blue, how much did my psychotic brother pay you to pretend to be his date for the night? How much is he paying you? You know he's got like five-hundred bucks he thinks I don't know about hidden in his pillow case!" Brick interrogated Bubbles from across the room. She giggled and Butch just sent his brother his sharpest glare.

"He didn't bribe me, I agreed to go. And we had so much fun and now WE'RE A COUPLE!" Bubbles announced cheerfully, throwing her arms in the air for emphasis. Butch laughed and pulled her into his arms tightly to prove her point.

"And it looks safe to say you two worked things out?" Butch asked the two leaders over Bubbles' giggling.

"We've more than worked it all out" Brick replied, taking Blossom's hand in his. Forgetting about the hot chocolate, they joined Bubbles and Butch on the couch. After a few minutes of group laughs, the metallic clink of the doorknob was heard.

All attention was focused on the pair that entered the house, or more so, on the intertwined hands of Buttercup and Boomer. Buttercup kicked the door shut with the back of her shoe, her face red and a slight glare in place. Jaws were practically on the floor at the sight. There was an awkward silence and staring contest between the six teens. Buttercup's lips shook with annoyance until she decided to break the silence.

"What!" she barked. Boomer remained calm as he half expected soothing like this to happen. Butch was next to say something, jumping up from his comfortable seat next to Bubbles and pointing a mocking finger at Brick.

"You owe me fifty bucks asshole!" he shouted.

Brick rolled his eyes and smirked, "That's okay, it'll come out of your little stash anyway."

Boomer tugged on Buttercup's hand and led her to the couch with their siblings. He gave Butch a cheeky grin. "You bet that I could get her to be my girlfriend! That's so sweet!" he cooed.

Butch and Brick both laughed. "Actually I bet that Buttercup would eventually be crazy enough to be your girlfriend." Butch said. He earned sharp glares from Boomer and Buttercup.

"Why you son of a-" Buttercup rose to slap sense into Butch, but Boomer grabbed her hands and pulled her into his arms where she calmed down. Bubbles giggled happily at the sight of her counterpart finally holding the girl of his dreams.

"Wow Boomer! Who would have thought you'd be the one to tame Buttercup!" Blossom teased, making everyone but Buttercup and Boomer burst into laughter.

"Tame?!"

"Hey, where's the Professor?" Blossom asked, intentionally changing the subject.

"He was in his lab, but Butch and I convinced him to get some sleep" Bubbles said.

"Well then maybe we should get going. It's been a long night and I think it's safe to say I'm not the only one who's getting tired." Brick said, gesturing to Boomer, who was struggling to keep his eyes open wide. Buttercup giggled softly and pulled Boomer up from the couch and led him toward the door.

"I'll miss you" Bubbles said sweetly to Butch as they followed their siblings.

"Stay bright Sunshine. I'll be back tomorrow, and we have this whole weekend to be together!" he quickly pecked her on the lips before stepping outside with his brothers.

"Boomer! Where's the car?" Brick asked. Boomer's eyes shot open with surprise and he looked around clueless.

"What? What are you talking about? You have the keys" he said. Brick stared blankly at him, and Boomer slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out the small key ring. He smiled meekly at his older brother.

"I-uh, guess it's still at the school…"

Brick sighed in annoyance. Blossom came from behind him and wrapped her arms around her arms around his waist. Her hug was more than enough to calm Brick down. He turned around and kissed Blossom's forehead sweetly before facing his brothers again.

"Alright guys, let's just fly home for now and get the car in the morning" he commanded. Boomer lifted his head lazily, dreading the sleepy flight ahead of him. Buttercup stepped in front of him, sympathy spread across her face. She couldn't help but think how adorable he looked when he was tired.

"Come on, wake up Blue. I can't have you getting hurt because you fell out of the sky." She quickly tugged on his arm, bringing his lips to hers in a kiss. Boomer's droopy eyes widened slightly at the sudden contact, and he smiled.

"Aw, Brick! Our wittle bwother is gwoing up!" Butch teased as Boomer joined them in the sky. The girls could hear Boomer muttering annoyed protests as the boys flew home.

"…Buttercup, where's the Professor's car?"

* * *

_**YAYYYYY! again, I apologize for the late chapter, but I hope it was worth the extra day! **_

_**Next chapter is last chapter... :,( **_

_**XOXO**_


	12. Epilogue- War at End

_**... well here it is. the last chapter of Love Like War...**_

_**Enjoy.**_

* * *

_Make a wish on our sorry little hearts_

_Have a smoke, pour a drink, steal a kiss in the dark_

_Fingernails on my skin like the teeth of a shark_

_I'm intoxicated by the lie_

_Two Months Later…_

Blossom admired her outfit in her full body mirror. She wore black skinny jeans with red converse, and a plain hot pink T-shirt that hugged her sides. Although she sported accessories such as her hotline bracelet and black rose necklace, Blossom felt like her outfit was missing something.

She snapped her fingers and rushed into her closet, rummaging through the drawers. She stood in front of the mirror again, but placed an old red snapback over her head. The fabric was dulled slightly and it even had a small tear revealing the material underneath, but it was special.

"Blossom! Are you ready yet?!" Bubbles', much calmer compared to Buttercup's, call was heard from downstairs. Blossom rushed into the living room, where her sisters were waiting and the Professor read the newspaper with a mug of coffee.

"See you after school Professor!" they said together. He gave a small wave and reminded them to have a good day, as if they could control it.

The three streaks of color that the people of Townsville had grown to love graced the bright morning sky as the sisters flew toward their school.

_In the chill of your stare I am painfully lost_

_Like a deer in the lights of an oncoming bus_

_For the thrill of your touch I will shamefully lust_

_As you tell me we're nothing but trouble_

Everybody in school knew how things went since a couple of months ago. Things had changed; some for the better, and some for the slightly less better.

First of all, Butch was a changed man. After seeing Bubbles clung to his arm for over a week, every girl got the hint that he was serious about her. And the fact that they shared a locker, went on a date every Friday, and held hands everywhere they went together made it crystal clear.

Bubbles was a constant reminder to Butch that he didn't have to have a new girl on his arm every week to be happy. She had the mix of characteristics that made him love-struck enough to keep him in place.

The couple walked through the doors, hand in hand of course, and made their way to their shared locker. Butch turned the combination dial and opened it, revealing a baby blue and forest green decorated locker. Bubbles' smile widened every time she laid eyes on the heart shaped picture of the two of them, centered on the locker's door.

Butch handed Bubbles all of the essential textbooks and supplies she needed for her first few classes and kissed her cheek.

"I'll see you later Sunshine" he said. Bubbles curled her lower lip in a pout.

"Promise?" she asked child-like.

Butch chuckled and held up his pinky finger, "Pinky promise!"

Bubbles grinned and intertwined her pinky with his before skipping off to class.

_Heart's on fire tonight_

_Feel my bones ignite_

_Feels like war, war_

_Feels like war, war_

_Heart's on fire tonight_

_Feel my bones ignite_

_Feels like war, war_

_Feels like war, war_

_We go together or we don't go down at all_

_We go together or we don't go down at all_

_We go together or we don't go down at all, whoa_

Two: if anyone thinks they will rank one or two in their class rank, they can forget it right then and there. Ranks one and two are proudly held by Brick and Blossom. Though nobody knows which of them is number one, that's between them.

Despite the constant academic battle of who will be the class valedictorian, Blossom and Brick have learned not allow unnecessary fights ruin their relationship again. Not only had they become closer than ever, but they also gained a new sense.

Blossom was slowly becoming less and less bossy, and giving her teammates a chance to fight for themselves. Brick thought his actions through a little more thoroughly, decreasing the chances of accidents and misunderstandings within the group. The two leaders seemed to work better as co-leaders, but they had also trained their separate groups to learn to fight individually again. After so much training, no villain would be able to stand a chance against them, even if they were separated.

Aside from being the best co-leaders, Blossom and Brick made one of the cutest couples in school, according to the school yearbook votes.

"AW! They're wearing matching hats!" some girl in the crown of high school students shouted. Brick chuckled and tightened his grip on Blossom's hand.

"Eight years later and it still looks better on you Bloss," he said. Blossom giggled as they entered their favorite class, Chemistry.

_Fail-safe trigger, lock-down call_

_Wipe the dry clean-slate, quick, sound the alarm_

_No escape from the truth and the weight of it all_

_I am caught in the web of a lie_

_And the b…. of it all is that I'm running from_

_The desire of the people to whom I belong_

_At the end of the day you can tell me I'm wrong_

_'Cause you went to all of this trouble_

Three: Just because Butch is now a faithful boyfriend, doesn't mean the school is without a player. Mitch Michelson replaced Butch as the schools most hated, yet loved, guy in school.

The incident at the dance hadn't affected him and Buttercup's friendship in the least, but he did know better than to even attempt anything like that again with her.

_Heart's on fire tonight_

_Feel my bones ignite_

_Feels like war, war_

_Feels like war, war_

_Heart's on fire tonight_

_Feel my bones ignite_

_Feels like war, war_

_Feels like war, war_

_We go together or we don't go down at all_

_We go together or we don't go down at all_

_We go together or we don't go down at all, whoa_

_(Let's go!)_

Four: Never coo at how much of a cute couple Boomer and Buttercup can be, no matter what! Buttercup may love Boomer to pieces, but she still doesn't handle the attention very well.

She'll hold hands with him and kiss him before saying goodbye, but mention how sweet it is and she'll turn into an embarrassed mess. And Buttercup doesn't handle embarrassment very well. But when they are alone, Boomer has seen the calm and loving demeanor that is hidden behind Buttercup's attitude, and he loves seeing that side.

Although, if she was like that all the time, she wouldn't be Buttercup… she'd be Bubbles, and Boomer wasn't into Bubbles like that. Everything seemed so right and in place. Never had Boomer expected things to turn out the way they did, but he wouldn't want it any other way.

"How are you this morning Butterfly?" he asked from behind Buttercup. She turned around and wasted no time in pressing her lips to his.

"What was that for?" he questioned, eyes half-lidded with bliss.

"I just love you… a lot" Buttercup answered, blushing slightly at the smiles from passing students. "Don't get used to that! All these people staring are really annoying." She glared daggers at the students who dared to stare, and they quickly turned away. Boomer chuckled, and took Buttercup's hand as they walked to class.

_Heart's on fire tonight_

_Feel my bones ignite_

_It feels like war (it feels like war)_

_Love feels like war (love feels like war)_

Five: this was how life around school would be from then on. Of course everybody knew there would be more issues in the future; perfection wasn't meant to last forever.

But no one thought about that. They only though about how great things were at the moment. And at the moment, the battle for love, peace, and pure happiness was over. _And they won this war…_

_Heart's on fire tonight_

_Feel my bones ignite_

_Feels like war, war_

_Feels like war, war_

_Heart's on fire tonight_

_Feel my bones ignite_

_Love feels like war, war_

_Feels like war, war_

_(one more time!)_

_We go together or we don't go down at all_

_We go together or we don't go down at all_

_We go together or we don't go down at all, whoa_

_Is this the end of us or just the means to start again?_

* * *

_***bows* thank you, thank you to all the wonderful people out there who enjoyed my story.**_

_**RoseSkylar, or better known now as Phoenix Godess of Fire, requested a mixed couple story a few months ago, and this was it. when she asked me, I honestly didn't expect it to be this long and (my opinion) pretty good. I'm quite proud of it and I hope she liked it.**_

_**next, I'd like to say, this is NOT the end of butchercup. i'll be around for a LONG time. I have a notebook full of ideas that are sure to keep me busy and a bunch of stories currently in progress. I haven't worked on them since I have felt the biggest need to finish Love Like War. so now that it's done, I can focus on my other stories. here's a list of titles to look out for:**_

_**To Pop A Bubble**_

_**Petrified Harmonies**_

_**A Darker Shade of Green**_

_**Welcome To Citiesville**_

_**No Mercy**_

_**Lovestruck (this one will be a LONG time till you see the first chapter, it will be one of my best hopefully)**_

_**Of course there will be the occasional random one-shots. once again thank you all so much!**_

_**Review your overall thoughts of the story please!**_

_**The Song is A Love Like War by All Time Low- I Do Not Own the Song nor any Powerpuff Girls Characters**_

_**XOXO**_


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